My front yard looks incredible right now. The various desert plants are blooming, and I can actually see color. Yellow, pink, purple, red, and green dot the entryway into my home, and I definitely feel a bit of pride.
But my yard didn’t look this nice two months ago.
I’m a bit embarrassed to say, but back in March I received a note from my HOA addressing a weed situation in my front yard. To be honest, I hadn’t really noticed. My travel had kept me pretty busy, arriving home late from a flight, and leaving early the next day—all in the cover of darkness. I had spotted a weed here or there, but nothing too major. Then I read the letter and went out front in the daytime.
It disgusted me. This house I had such pride in owning looked neglected.
I put on some work clothes and promptly pulled every weed I could find. It took me about an hour, and I was sure had solved the problem. I packed my suitcase and headed out for another batch of travel.
When I returned, I saw that the weeds had as well. I repeated my efforts one more time, only to see the same results, a few days later. Apparently, I was only removing the growing weeds, but was doing nothing to stop the seeds. I finally brought out a company to deal with the problem, and within days, the weeds were not only gone, but my plants rapidly began to bloom.
The weeds had been choking my landscaping; my plants were not getting the necessary moisture and nutrients in the soil that they needed, and instead of admiring my front yard, I was engaged in a Sisyphus-like battle against the weeds.
As I finished a walk around my neighborhood the other day, I started to consider the “weeds” in my own life—you know, those things that consume my time and prevent me from flourishing. Yes, I might have a day or two where I “remove the weed,” but am I addressing the distraction at the seed?
My plants are flourishing right now in a desert environment, and I’m wondering… Is there a way that I might be able to do the same?