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Hello friends,
My gardening skills remain a work in progress. But since my days as a classroom teacher of lanky and emotional thirteen-year-olds, I have often considered my work as a “planter of seeds.”
The musician Brian Eno compared the process of making music with gardening.
“One is carefully constructing seeds, or finding seeds,
carefully planting them and then letting them have their life.
And that life isn’t necessarily exactly what you’d envisaged for them.”
—Brian Eno
Although I wasn't creating music, I hoped my teaching and mentoring influenced students one tiny seed at a time. Over the years, my responsibilities stretched beyond classrooms, moving from children to adults and across many types of organizations and communities.
My work often spaned short spurts of time and didn’t always allow me to witness the outcome of the efforts of individuals or the group.
Thinking of myself as a planter of seeds helped me reconcile the discomfort of knowing I’m often in this place for a season. I created fertile soil and planted a few conceptual and practical seeds.
We all plant seeds, often without realizing the vital work we do as we go about our daily tasks. Sometimes, we're lucky enough to see our results in the accomplishments of those we touch. We did our small part as a “seed planter,” so others could create their best work.
What seeds will you plant today? Seeds take on many shapes—a word of encouragement, supporting a friend, or reading with a child.
Let’s plant seeds for a future we may never see. Together we make a difference.
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