In December, I was fortunate to visit family in Tucson for a week. I stayed with my dad, whose home backs up to a winding bike and walking path at the foot of the Catalina Mountains. When I went out to walk around his apartment complex the first day to clear my head and body from travel, I had no idea a heavenly trail lay within close proximity to his front door.
I need time alone to recharge and I need to move my body rhythmically to transition pent-up energy, emotions and thoughts and to invite inspiration, clarity and new ideas. This gift provided both for me all week.
I may share several lessons from my walks in Tucson but today I want to write about a rock garden I discovered along the path. See the photo below. As soon as I saw it, two lessons came to me and today I'll share the first one.
A rock garden is like life. One rock at a time hardly makes a difference but when you put it all together, the variety and intricate designs make a beautiful masterpiece.
We can't judge the process when it’s under construction. The first rock would look like any other random rock on the ground. The second or third wouldn't look like much either. But as the process continues, we begin to get glimpses of what is unfolding and the vision of the gardener starts to become visible.
There may be times when we don’t have a clue where the design is going or how everything will work together, and then we see patterns emerge and rocks seem to fall into place. At certain phases of the garden's development, we may think we know what needs to happen next so we start looking around expectantly for the rocks WE would choose.
Then suddenly we are surprised when a very strange rock is added. That rock, we ask? How does that one fit? If our garden ended there, we might never know. It will take a little (or a lot) more rocks to be added before we can truly appreciate all the unlikely additions to our garden.
If a rock garden represents our lives, can we trust that each rock is being selected on purpose at just the right time, in just the right sequence and combination? Where each rock uniquely adds to our fullest inner and outer living experiences?
I purposefully keep religious beliefs out of my writings for Finding the Gift. But occasionally I will include glimpses of my faith which developed when I began my own recovery journey. I choose to have faith that God is watching over me and you, for today and tomorrow, and always, always with the end in mind.
It brings me peace to consider how carefully God is choosing each rock that makes up our lives, our rock gardens. The pretty ones, the ugly ones, the sharp-edged rocks and the smooth stones. The predictable rocks and yes, even the unwanted or unexpected ones.
When we doubt our purpose, when we are trying to make sense of our paths or when we're so sure we know what's best, I suggest we find a rock garden to observe (or a picture of one) and know that it too was once unfinished. As it evolved, it became something much greater and more beautiful than any of the individual rocks could have created from their own limited perspectives.
If you're feeling stagnant, lost or bewildered, trust and hold on. More will be revealed. Remember, an open mind receives more gifts to open.
*Rock Garden and other pictures below!