“Underneath all that old growth is…WOW!”
–Me
I love this weather!! I worked for a bit yesterday and then rushed out to my yard in the sunshine to clip, rake and remove last years dead growth, to make room for the new. The crocuses are up already and the bulbs are going to be blooming soon. The rose bushes need to be pruned to make room for this year’s new shoots and blooms. As I clipped and pulled and raked, I was reminded of belief systems that many of us have that need to be clipped, pulled and raked.
This picture is of last year’s gaura. Leaving this old growth serves to keep the roots warm during the cold of winter to prevent freezing.
Our old beliefs that we may hang onto, us to serve a purpose, too. “Jan’s too small. What good would she be on our team?” That belief was given to me on the playground of life. For a long time, I believed that being too small was a bad thing. But, it used to serve me when I didn’t want to do something hard. “I can’t do that, I’m too small. You need to pick someone else.” That belief would rear its ugly head the next time team captains were picking team mates. Rather than be the last pick, I would stay in for recess and help Miss James–and recess was my favorite subject! AND being too small was devastating when I couldn’t ride the roller coaster at Euclid Beach park because I wasn’t tall enough. Those old beliefs needed to be faced head on and replaced.
What limiting beliefs are causing you to stay in at recess? I’m too fat, I’m too old (don’t even try to use that one in front of me,:) I’m not enough, I can’t speak in front of people, I can’t do that, I’m not even going to try (that won’t fly with me, either) or I’m just a mom. Those are just a few with which I have come in contact. Chop those old beliefs away and you may be surprised at the possibilities for your life. Lookie what I found when I slashed back the old growth! Tulips! You just never know what beauty and freedom are concealed behind some old beliefs that no longer serve you.
Take some time this morning. Think about the last time you didn’t do something you really wanted to. Or think about the last time you did something you didn’t want to–like eating a whole package of Lifesaver Gummies. What is the feeling or belief behind your actions…or inactions? Identify those. Are they true? Really…are they? Who would you like to be in that moment? What would you like to feel in that moment?
Yesterday, when I clipped away the old growth, the gaura was already sprouting new growth! We are also going to have a bumper crop of California poppies that were growing underneath all the dead leaves. More bulbs were peeking up underneath the dead pampas grass. What else will I uncover?
On the right, is what the gaura will look like in a couple of months. Stunning. I have pink and white and it’s beautiful. Another name for gaura is “Whirling Butterflies.” How appropriate–because the freedom you feel when you aren’t trapped by old beliefs is like that of a butterfly squeezing out of its old cocoon. And life gets just as beautiful.
Expectantly typed,
Jan
Jan McDonald
The John Maxwell Team
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