Follow Your Dreams

I am not a plant person. My existing plants survive me. My neglect. My indifference. My poor choices for placement. The terror of feline teeth is a constant tremor rippling through the secret lives of my plants~ violets, spathes, ivy and lucky bamboo alike.

Then came my fascination with potted orchids. The purchase. The pleasure. The seemingly proper placement.

Then came the dream. 2 months ago, as my first potted orchid was at the height of its bloom, all 3 of my African violets, (the oldest of whom is 10, the youngest of whom is 5) came to me in an early morning dream. They pleaded with me to move them from the north window perch in my studio to the shelf in the living room that held the orchid. A north window as well.

Because I pay attention to my dreams, I moved the trio. Instantly, the atmosphere in my living room felt...happier. The spot on the floor beneath the north window became my new favorite place to read magazines, meditate and sip rose petal tea.

The blooms on the orchid waned and fell to the foot of its pot. But color was not lost. Beauty was not lost. The baton was simply being passed with each bloom that fell. It passed to the violets. And they responded. For the first time in their familial lives, all three of my violets began to bloom at the same time.

To encourage them, I have purchased a new orchid. Its blooms are unfurling like butterfly flags. But it's the wee velvet blooms that are singing to me and doing their part to hold happiness at a palpable level in my home. It's the wee velvet blooms that have brought me the most beauty, the beauty of truth which is this: If you follow your dreams, your life will blossom. Threefold.