Grow Where You’re Planted
As spring arrives and flowers begin to make their appearance on porches and in meadows, I want to share with you a way of thinking that I was taught during my nine years of service in the United States Marine Corps: grow where you’re planted.
Service members and their families are all too familiar with the uncertainty of their futures. Sometimes you’re not sure where you’re going to be the next month, let alone the next year. Duty stations change, training exercises begin and end, and deployments happen at a moment’s notice. And every change requires a new plan for your family and future. Sometimes those plans don’t always work out like you thought they would.
This fact of life isn’t restricted to military families alone. We all find ourselves, at times, with expectations that have not been met and plans that must change. Not long ago, I found myself making a drastic career change just shy of 30 after a spinal fusion ended my military aspirations (and my ability to sneeze without bracing myself.) The cards I was dealt in life were taken from me, shuffled, and tossed into the air in an unwanted game of 52 Pickup. And I’ll be honest with you, I spent many days feeling sorry for myself and lamenting the loss of where I thought my life would go. But at some point, I had to pick up my cards and get back into the game. And five years later, I find myself with a great job that I love, a wonderful husband, a house, and a brand-new puppy who has almost stopped biting my toes 24/7. None of that would have happened without a change in attitude and the desire to grow, no matter the circumstances.
Ask yourself, what sort of things help you grow? Is it support from your friends and family? New educational pursuits? Physical fitness? Immaculately crafted spreadsheets? Whatever you find that gives your life purpose and meaning, harness its power and use that to move and propel yourself forward.
So, what do you do when all your life plans are blown around like dandelion seeds in the breeze? Grow where you’re planted. Adapt to the situation and overcome your challenges. Wherever your roots are forcefully put down, spread them out and grow. Grow like a weed. Grow in the sun and in the rain. Grow in gardens and between the cracks in the concrete. And when someone reaches into the soil and tries to pull out your roots, grow back just as big and strangle their azaleas.