“Flowers teach us that nothing is permanent: not their beauty, not even the fact that they will inevitably wilt, because they will still give new seeds.” -Paula Coelho, The Spy
As with any child fascinated with bright and blossoming things, I used to randomly pluck any eye-catching wildflowers from the sidewalk, or much to my mum’s dismay, the beautiful, intricately cultivated flowers from her garden.
I couldn’t help it though, because back then I had yet to develop the emotional maturity to realise that these flowers deserve to be left alone to be enjoyed by others. I loved the idea of having them all to myself, and would often submerge them into water as quickly as I could upon plucking it to ensure that their chances of survival is at its optimum.
I wanted to retain the awe and wonder I felt for this flower for as long as possible. I don’t ever want to let it out my sight, because I want to care for such a beautiful thing to the best of my ability.
At that age, I thought I’ve learnt well enough to properly cultivate plants. All you need is water, sunlight and air, right? Check, check and check. I’ll give it an even better life because it’ll come with my love and attention on top of the essentials, and surely that’s better than them being out in the wild, bereft from care?
As you would expect, these flowers never really lasted that long, especially when compared to how long they would’ve lived if I were to have just left them alone. The gratification of having such beauty in my hands lasted just as long temporarily as it did the longevity of the flower, but that still did not stop me from my flower-picking tendencies nonetheless.
Growing up is inevitable, and I’m unsure what exact event triggered my childhood habit to come to an abrupt halt. The specifics doesn’t really matter, I guess, but growing up changed a lot of things for me.
Growing up is realising that no matter how good our intention might be to tend for something, sometimes the best thing we could do for them is to leave them alone.
Growing up is realising that if you really love something that much, you might actually want to let it go instead of holding onto it so tightly, because we could be so absorbed with it all we fail to notice that we’re not the best thing for it despite us trying our hardest to be.
Growing up is learning how to admire flowers from afar without disturbing its status quo, and to realise that just because it’s not in your possession doesn’t make it any less valuable.
It’s okay to let them flourish on their own while we cheer on them on the sidelines. It’s okay to let them go. 🌷
