Be the Tall Corn Stalk
Lessons from an autumn field
Did you ever notice that some corn stalks grow a lot taller than the rest? My writing desk window looks out across a corn field. The corn is high right now. It’s ready to be cut. All the green is gone, and the stalks have yellowed and curled. In the sea of surrounding vibrant fall colors, the corn’s absence of color has its own beauty. My eyes are drawn to its blanched pale.
But every time my eyes settle on the field, I am struck by a handful of stalks that are significantly taller than the rest. I can’t help but wonder how that happened. Each stalk of corn started out with the same basic ingredients: seeds, good soil, fertilizer, and water. But some thrive more than others, despite starting with the same elements.
I did a little research and learned that a possible reason is that one stalk started life a tiny bit taller than the rest. That single, slightly taller stalk got more sunlight than the ones next to it. Which meant that the root system grew faster, and it was able get more nutrients from the soil. Hence, it became taller than the others.
I like to think that those taller stalks just reached higher. That it was a little more than just luck. I think that all of us can reach higher in life. Most of us start out with the same basic ingredients and tools to succeed and grow…
