by Jan Peterson at National Floral Supply
If you’re like most of us, the days after Valentine’s Day are a mix of emotions and physical pain. You’re likely to feel physically exhausted and emotionally drained. Maybe you had a better than expected holiday, or your sales fell short. Whatever the case may be, take time to appreciate all you contribute to the world. Stop for a moment and appreciate the beauty you provide to your customers.
Here is an exercise from the Botanical Trader, called “Gratitude for Flowers”. To get started all you need is a single flower:
- Look at the flower as if you are seeing it for the first time. Visually explore every aspect of its formation, and allow yourself to be consumed by its presence. Notice the size of the petals, the color, the different shades of color throughout the flower, the small intricate details. Notice how you feel. Allow yourself to connect with its energy and its purpose within the natural world
- Feel the petals. Notice how they feel. Notice the sensations on your skin. What is the texture like
- Bring the flower close to your nose. Smell the flower and take in all the scents. Does it have any smell? Maybe it has, perhaps it does not. Does the scent change? Maybe, it brings up a memory. How does that memory feel? Just observe, notice, and have no judgement.
- Ask some important questions about the flower:
- Give some thought to how the flower came into existence?
- What is needed to make it bloom? – sunshine, rain, good soil, pollination from the bees, etc.
- How does this flower impact your world or the world we live in? – the pleasure it gives by its look and smell, food for bees and butterflies, the ability to brighten somebody else’s day etc.
- Think about what life might be like without flowers?
- Look closely at the flower and notice its more delicate, more intricate details?
- Give some thought about the relationship between the flower and the world it grows in. How does it play an interconnected role in the functioning of the earth?
Take some time writing down five things that you observed or felt throughout this exercise.
The big question is, do we allow nature to do its job? Are we too busy to stop and notice the powerful effect nature can have on our entire well-being? Or are we too distracted and overwhelmed to let nature in?
Get in the habit of stopping and smelling the flowers more, looking deeper into their creation and purpose so that you can truly appreciate how they support your life and the entire world we live in. Happiness, joy and contentment is found in the little details of life. Sometimes you just need to pause, breathe and become present in order to see them.
“Quiet the mind and the soul will speak”
Ma Jaya
