My definition of a “weed” is a plant in the wrong place. Ralph Waldo Emerson was more philosophical: “What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have never been discovered.” As I pulled mighty weeds in my side yard with some that had fluff-ball heads getting ready to explode their seed, I wondered where they came from, as no other part of my garden had this pest. Then I peeked through the fence where a host of the rascal plants were blooming undeterred in my neighbor’s yard.
Perhaps the neighbor was a fan of Carey Salerno’s poem, The Weeds (Accidentally on Purpose): “I watched the first weeds burgeon and decided this was the summer / I wouldn’t stop them, every inch of crabgrass, every foot higher / the woody stem of nightshade… / When faced with all that overgrowth, doesn’t some large part of you want to / watch it manifest more, just a little bit, to see how wild things really / can get… / if I can get myself to see it that way, to let myself feel what it’s / like to let anticipations go, to learn to revel in what might seem more like / mess but could just be learning….”
Or, perhaps the neighbor had read Jake Eagle’s and Michael Amster’s book, The Power of Awe: Overcome Burnout & Anxiety, Ease Chronic Pain, Find Clarity & Purpose – in Less than 1 Minute Per Day, where almost any topic might become awe-inspiring! Mindfulness author Amster finds the practice of tuning into weed awe instructive for teaching resilience to flourish in difficult conditions:
“Weeds are remarkable teachers. They grow in places where nothing else seems able to survive. They push through cracks in sidewalks, emerge from gravel, and thrive in harsh conditions with little water or care. Their resilience is extraordinary…some had delicate purple blossoms. Others displayed geometric patterns more beautiful than many cultivated plants…the only reason we call them ‘weeds’ is because they are growing where we don’t want them. How often do we do the same with people, things, experiences, or parts of ourselves?”
Yes, we do misinterpret “weedy” parts of our personalities on a regular basis. Do you have some part of your personality that seems like “taking-up-too-much space” might apply?
Let’s apply an awe exercise to ourselves: Turn on your imagination. Notice some part of you that seems bothersome. Imagine this part of your personality having color, shape, texture. Ask yourself when this part first showed up — perhaps in some momentous time. Consider the part’s tough resilience to flourish in difficult situations. Thank this hard-working part of yourself, likely trying to protect you from some real or perceived danger. Awe often hides in ordinary days.
Pearls of Peace (PoP) Quiz
510. Is there a part of your personality that you regularly cast aside as “weed?”
511. What might shift in your mind’s eye if you took time to investigate how that part of you filled a purpose, likely years ago?
Pearls of Peace: A Family Psychologist’s Circle-of-Life Blog 