Be a weed!

Yes, you read that right. I said be a weed. Two weeks ago I started working in my flower bed, getting it ready for some mulch and to plant some new flowers.  I started off by spraying all the weeds with weed killer. Today I went out to start spreading my first load of mulch and I noticed somethings.

That got me to thinking about how people are or could be like weeds and the following is what I came up with.

1. Weeds will hold on for dear life no matter what they face.
Weeds are almost impossible to kill. They will fight all of our efforts to get rid of them. It doesn't matter if you are spraying or pulling them up, they are not going to go down without a fight.

2. Weeds can have really big root systems.
Their roots don't necessarily have to go down deep into the ground, but they do spread out.   They can connect to the root system of other weeds and continue to grow.  They normally have one strong main root with many small web like roots growing to the sides.

3. Weeds can be beneficial to our lives.
You might find this hard to believe but there are actually 8 different types of weeds that you can eat. I think this would be important information to know if I am ever stranded somewhere.  I recall reading a story of a family during the Great Depression that had no money to buy food, but the mother had an amazing knowledge of edible plants. She was able to keep her family going with that knowledge until the father could find work. So you see, knowing about which weeds you can/can not eat could make all the difference to your survival.

The following is a link to a website that I found with a few edible/medicinal weeds.

http://www.artofmanliness.com/2010/10/06/surviving-in-the-wild-19-common-edible-plants/


4. Weeds can be beautiful.
No matter how my day is going or what I am  dealing with the sight of a little yellow headed dandelion in the yard always makes me smile. I know when I start to see these little "weeds" pop up that spring is well on it's way and the cold, dreary winter is over.

5. Weeds can teach us so many wonderful lessons in life.
I remember being a little girl, going into the back yard and picking a whole bunch of dandelions for my Mama. I didn't know at the time that they were just weeds, but my Mama acted as if I had giving her the grandest, finest bouquet of flowers in the world. That is something I will never forget.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PbTggeLlxc

You may still be asking yourself why I think we should be like weeds. Let me explain my idea a little further.

1. We should always hold on for dear life no matter what we face and never go down without a fight.
2.We need a root system and by that I mean family.  Not everyone is blessed with a good family life, but we can still have those special people that are like family to us. They will connect with us and help support us in difficult times.
3. We should  be beneficial to others. How many times would a kind word or act have made a huge difference in someone else's life? We should always be on the lookout for a chance to do something nice for someone else.
4. Even in the times that life is difficult, we can still see the beauty in it. Trust me I know how hard that is to do. There have been times I have struggled with it, but when I look for the beauty in life I always find it.
5. We can be teachers too. We all have certain talents or life lessons that we can pass on to others. It is  a wonderful thing to  leave our wisdom and knowledge with those that may cross our path.  

What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson, Fortune of the Republic, 1878.

"That's my 'two-cents worth', what's yours?"