This reflection started with a bottle of seeds. They are Morning Glory seeds. Morning Glories are among my favorite flowers, and they are really easy to grow. They make some of the most stunning flowers in the summertime that you can see. It occurred to me this morning that it’s mid May, and those seeds are still in the jar. They won’t ever become those beautiful flowers unless I take them outside and put them in the ground where they will germinate, grow and bloom. There’s something I need to do, and I’m doing it today!
Have you ever noticed when someone is good at something? It could be anything. It could be how they interact with others; how they decorate a room; their ability to dress stylishly on a budget; their eye for detail in carpentry or bookkeeping or organizing. It could be how tech savvy they are or how well they paint or sew or sing or write. It could be how completely focused they are when listening to others.
Here’s another question. How often do we tell people how well we think they do certain things? In fact, I know some people who are so skilled at that very thing–telling other people when they notice how well they do something!
When we notice someone doing something well, when we let them know, when we appreciate them, when we offer our gratitude for what they can do well, we are planting seeds of creativity. Sometimes, people are so accustomed to the thing they do well that they just think of it as ordinary and not as something at which they are skillful and adept. A few grateful and observant voices can come along and wake them up to the creativity and skill they possess and spur them on to bloom. Regardless of whether they know themselves to be good at something, everyone loves (and needs) to be appreciated.
Now, I have some seeds to plant. How about you?
~Bob Patrick
Spoken like a true teacher !