Promises

 

The walking irises in my "sun room" are developing buds.

A bud is a promise of a flower.

A flower promises seeds.

Seeds promise more plants. 

However, I haven't seen seeds on the walking iris. The flowers do become little plantlets that, when the stalk bends down and the plantlet touches soil, become new plants. So, this remains a promise of new plants.

On Sunday, before my coffee, before I did anything else, I took about 15 minutes to bundle up and go outside. That sounds nuts, considering the temperature was about 10 degrees Fahrenheit below zero (minus 23 Celsius).

But it was Sunday. I like to change my routine a bit on Sundays. Usually that means skipping my workout and doing only yoga. However, this Sunday was different. Maybe going out into subzero weather simply felt a bit exciting.

Usually, my morning begins with me stepping outside for a few, or many, moments, often with a mug of coffee in hand. It helps me feel connected to the land. With this deep cold, though, I've skipped that habit. I missed that. So, out into the cold...

I had considered taking a short walk. Once the cold hit me, I reconsidered. I wasn't chilled yet, but... So my walk consisted of a couple of dozen steps to give me a good view of the garden.

The entrance arch was bare of greenery. Until the first freeze, it had been burden with huge loofa vines. The snow cover hid any trace of this having been a lush garden, except for the mounds that indicated where the planting beds are.

A barren wasteland... not.

I knew what had been there before. I knew what will grow there again. I had started gathering seeds. I have been planning where and what to plant. I have gathered a few things together in preparation for starting the earliest transplants -- cabbage, broccoli. My mind is full of greenery. In a few months, the garden will be, as well.

Promises. The garden I saw before me was not barren. It is full of promises. The seeds I've gathered are quiet promises. The day, the world, Life is full of promise. We just need to carry through, to bloom.

This iris bud, full of promise, will deliver on its promise... one beautiful little flower.