There’s a quiet truth woven into the fabric of human experience: what we see in our lives today is the result of what we have put in place in the past. Our daily choices, habits, and even the thoughts we’ve nurtured act like seeds planted in the soil of time. Eventually, they sprout, take root, and bear fruit—whether sweet or bitter, nourishing or rotten.
Looking Carefully
I recently heard it said that a happy life largely boils down to three central decisions: 1) Whom you marry, 2) Where you work, and 3) Where you live. It may be a bit simplistic and leaves out a lot, but there's also tremendous wisdom in it. These three core choices decide most of the options that will and won't become available to us in the future and this determinative process lead us down a road from which it is often not easily altered. More often than not, when we look closer, we can trace back our current situation to past decisions. The career path we’re on, the health of our bodies, the depth of our relationships, even the state of our inner peace—they are all harvests of seeds we once planted.
Looking at our life today gives us some good insight into our habitual thinking and behavioral patterns. To see weeds among the flowers in our personal garden is to acknowledge that at some point we neglected our soil, planted carelessly, or simply didn’t pay attention. But it is also empowering. Because if our present reflects yesterday’s planting, then our future will be shaped by the seeds we sow today.
Life as a Garden
When we think of life as a garden, we notice some interesting observations. Sometimes we plant intentionally, carefully choosing what to cultivate. Other times, we scatter seeds haphazardly, without adequate thought about what might grow. Either way, the soil responds faithfully. It doesn’t argue with us, it doesn’t discriminate—it simply produces what has been sown.
If we’ve sown kindness, we often find ourselves surrounded by loving relationships. If we’ve sown discipline, we may reap stability and peace of mind. If we’ve sown neglect, resentment, or fear, then thorns and weeds are likely to show up. The garden always reflects the gardener’s hand.
What’s most beautiful about this truth is that we are never locked into one season. Gardens go through cycles. We can always begin again—clearing away what no longer serves us, nourishing the soil of our lives, and choosing new seeds that better align with who we want to become.
Reflection and Renewal
The moment we stop to reflect on our harvest is the moment change becomes possible. What do we see in our lives right now? Do we like what’s growing? Where are the flowers, and where are the weeds? Instead of being discouraged by the weeds, we can see them as teachers—gentle reminders of what not to plant next time.
Seasons shift, and with each one comes a new chance. Right now, as summer gives way to autumn, we can release old habits, beliefs, or choices and plant something that better serves our life design. Our future is not determined solely by the past. It’s shaped, moment by moment, by what we decide to sow today.
This idea inspired me to write a poem, “I Reap What I’ve Sown.” It captures the way life brings both reckoning and renewal—the recognition of what has grown from the past, and the hope of planting more wisely for the future.
I Reap What I’ve Sown
The temperature’s shifted, a chill licks the air
The scorching sun’s lifted its burdensome glare
I’m gathering in what’s already been sown
Manifestations of what I have grown
My life is a garden, butterflies, bees
And flowers and weeds that stretch skyward through breeze
I was the gardener who planted the seeds
Now I’m the reaper who’s brought to my knees
Now cease from striving, my soul and my heart
This season is done and soon we’ll restart
Assess what sprouts up and in time we’ll be freed
Next spring, I will choose better quality seed
I'm looking with courageous eyes at the life I have created and setting my sights on continuous improvement. How about you? I'm curious what you see when you look at the garden of your life. Comment below to courageously share what you see when you survey the garden of your life.
This poem is available in a poetry art print at SonyaKayBlakeGallery.com. Click here to add it to your collection.
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