On Emergence

I plant a small heirloom vegetable and flower garden in my backyard each year. Every spring, I will find some seedlings in the garden in unexpected places. They have sprouted from the seeds of last year’s forgotten crops. Gardeners have a special word for this. These plants are called “volunteers.”

This year I devoted an entire raised bed to cut flower varieties for making arrangements. Among the dahlias and the ranunculus bulbs, several volunteer cucumber plants sprouted in May. I pulled them up.

More appeared in the first week of June.

I pulled those up.

As if undeterred by my efforts, more appeared in mid-June, with vigorous dark green leaves and intrepid tendrils snaking around the dahlia stakes.

Meanwhile, the cucumber seeds I had planted in the bed designated for the purpose have barely sprouted. Two of six seeds have emerged since May. Weeks after planting, their meager leaves are pale green and stunted.

Finally taking stock of this, I stopped uprooting the volunteers. They put out cheery yellow flowers this week and cucumbers won’t be far behind, nestled among the flowers. 

So often I fail to see something real and beautiful emerging because it doesn’t match the plan I set for myself. Absorbed in my map of expectations, I ignore the wonderful pattern emerging right in front of me.

Might this be true for you sometimes as well?

Reflection Questions for Leaders: 

• If you set aside your plan, what beautiful patterns do you see emerging in your life right now? What more could you appreciate about them?

• Every organization has volunteers. Are yours being uprooted because they don’t belong? How might you find ways to support their growth?