change Archives - Page 15 of 15 - Cara Lumen

It fell before me on the ground,
The delicate white ruffled blossom,
Finished with its major work
Its edges beginning to brown.

It lay contentedly in my palm
As I took in the dainty dark red lines
Springing from small maroon dots in its center.
Two ochre accents glowed near the base.
Three petals surrounded the miniature cup.
It was a masterful piece of detail.

I look up for its origin.
It came from a cluster of intricate blossoms.
Which one exactly I did not know for
duplicate clusters nestled happily everywhere
Almost hidden by the giant heart-shaped leaves
on a huge tree spread out overhead.
The tree was full of white, ruffled pockets
of beautiful detail.

The blossom in my hand spoke to me:
“If God in her infinite wisdom has given
so much thought to me, a small blossom
among many,
Then KNOW as much care has gone into the
detail of YOU.”

I reflected on this.

I have a place in The Plan as does the blossom.
I think perhaps the blossom is more accepting of
that place than I am.
It simply “is”.
It allows itself to be guided by an Unseen Hand
Trusting the outcome will be exactly right.
Trusting and being.
Trusting and being.

When I feel alone or unsure or unloved
I will remember the Little Blossom.
For I too am part of a cluster,
A cluster of humanity nestled
In the branches of the Universe.
And I am as beautiful and intricate
And as loved
As the blossom before me.

Cara Lumen, The Vision Distiller, is a philosopher who helps other discover their infinite possibilities. www.caralumen.com

by Cara Lumen

It lay curled on the ground beside the tree it had served, beautiful even as it moved into uselessness. I noticed it on my walk and was drawn to pick it up; looking for the message it might hold for me.

It comes from a Crape Myrtle tree—a tree that blooms late in the summer and grows by adding beautiful flowers in shades of red on the tips of each branch, These flowers then become the branches for next year’s growth. It is also s a tree that gracefully lets go of the old.

The bark was on the ground because the tree had expanded and split if off. It has completed its work. I’m certain it had done its work well, protecting the inner tree, but it no longer fit. If it had stayed in place, the tree could not grow.

What do I have in place that is keeping me from growing? How have I expanded and what do I need to allow to split off? What no longer fits into my vision, my plan, my passion?

It was the message I sought.

I’ve had several opportunities lately to move backward—take up services I used to offer but have outgrown. That’s why the idea of doing them again held no appeal—I had outgrown them. I am in a different mind set. I have new skills I love to use more. I have new ideas I wasn’t to express. Why would I ever entertain the thought of moving backward?

Sometimes we are offered choices in order to fortify our determination to move forward.

What has changed for you? What are you willing to do? What activities and interactions bring you joy? But more importantly, what are you no longer willing to do? What needs to drop away, just as the bark has dropped from the tree it once served.

From moment to moment we are different. We gain new insights with every interaction. We find new adventures that excite us. And we cannot go on the new adventures unless we stop carrying the old stuff around. We cannot move forward as long as we are holding on to old beliefs and habits. We cannot grow without holding new expectations.

The Crape Myrtle tree adds new growth in the form of beautiful flowers, just as add new aspects to your life as you open up to new experiences. But in doing so, the tree outgrows its skin, its bark, and releases and discards what it no longer needs.

What do you need to release?

Detail

The Case of the Curled Bark