“Just be a little patient with them and they’ll come back.” – Tony Garcia

Measuring Success

“Just be a little patient with them and they’ll come back,” Tony Garcia said as we stood looking at the decimated, obviously-hurt holly plants in front of us.

I called Tony for advice because he is one of my go to friends when it comes to gardening and landscape maintenance. He always seems to be able to look past a plant’s current condition to foresee what it will look like if offered healing care and patience. In this case, he knew that the extra harsh winter had only damaged the outer branches and leaves of the plants. And, since he helps care for and maintain these same plants, he is aware of the strength residing in their roots. He sees the whole plant, not just what it reveals of itself above the soil, so I trusted Tony’s recommendation of offering patience and observed.

And, as spring advanced with its life-giving caress of temperature moderation and enriching rain, the strength hidden in the roots, foreknown by Tony, began to expose itself in the form of successful, fresh growth.

Booker T. Washington once said, “Success is to be measured not so much by the position one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome.”

These holly plants, once distressed by a seasonable obstacle, were soon in the process of becoming whole and beautiful again.

If you’ve run into some seasonable obstacles in your life, you can hold Tony’s recommendations with confidence. After all, everyone runs into seasonable obstacles on their journey.

Be patient with yourself. Some challenges will feel as if they’ve trimmed you right down to your roots. And remember, it may take more time than desired for your roots to fully heal you, especially if you feel as if you’ve been trimmed right down to the ground. Some damage may take years to be overcome so keep looking to your roots for strength. 

Nourish your roots daily. Be sure to place yourself in a position to receive selfcare. My friend Dawn Spencer used a simple, daily practice of reciting her blessings to start down her own healing path.

Dawn said, “I didn’t know if reciting my blessings every day would make a difference or not, but I did it anyway. My healing didn’t happen immediately while doing so, but I soon began to notice incremental improvements.”

In her case, she was working with a bank to make progress toward catching up on late payments. Her bank’s customer service representative kindly worked with her face-to-face on a regular basis.

“She began to point out my progress as we met,” Dawn explained. “As I made progress toward catching up, I saw excitement showing on my customer service representative’s face. She repeatedly told me I was doing well and how impressed she was. As we continued working together my belief grew into rock-hard confidence, right up to the time I recognized myself as successful and fully healed, better and stronger than before.”

Like Dawn, you can look past your current condition and foreknow your immanent beauty by being patient with yourself, strengthening your roots and measuring your success by the obstacles you overcome, no matter what season of life you’re in.

____________________________________

I’ve helped thousands of people, as a real estate & lifestyle expert, to discover where and how they want to live and work; to achieve Realesation. That’s why I bring you American Dream TV, Both Sides of the Fence, About the Dish, Monday's Warm Cocoa and HomeByDesign Magazine to stir your heart and mind:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1O6csyUhByBzo_Z50rJcY9w0uAonVelgE/view?usp=sharing

Healing From the Roots Holly Plant

Lynn Butterfield, Associate Broker, Coldwell Banker, 801-550-6334, Lynn@LynnButterfield.com, www.LynnButterfield.com