TURN

By Christine Jayakaran

A sweet friend of mine gifted me a Bryophyllum plant for Christmas. It looked adorable contained in its its little plastic casing and I fretted if I was a worthy owner for this precious bit of greenery. I did what any amateur plant owner does- left it out in the sun for a couple of weeks and promptly forgot all about it. I did happen to see leaflets begin to sprout along the margins of the leaves and it looked other-worldly. (I honestly do not know what kind of Plant biology I studied because the first time I saw those outgrowths I flipped out and thought I had done something terrible to the plant. Thankfully google helped me get sorted). So I finally brought my plant into the house, placed it in an earthen pot and situated it on a window ledge in our guest room where it got filtered sunlight and the occasional watering it needed. What got my attention though, was how in the ensuing days, this plant which was initially minuscule began to grow and not just grow in height but the new leaves that were sprouting were always turned towards the sunlight (I Know! I do not deserve my degree in Plant Biotech). We have learnt this in theory, we have even done it practically in school but I think this was something I personally needed to see and apply in my life.

You see, I’m at a point in my life where the voices around me are many. The voices are both positive and negative, both uplifting and downright saddening and both grounding and distracting. When the voices begin to get deafening I tend to take my eyes off the ball and begin to drift. This is probably the case with every single one of you reading this blog. All of us are constantly surrounded by the voices of popular culture, of the “influencers”, of our critics and of our followers. We are being bombarded by content. Content on social media is blaringly loud be it the newest diets or fitness tips, latest parenting hacks, spicy relationship advice, top notch suggestions on holiday spots and of course the must haves in fashion and home decor. It’s easy to be looking at these for our daily inspiration but then we will be left with a crick in our necks and a dullness in our spirits. Truthfully I don’t know how to dim these voices around me (Muting my phone doesn’t help especially if the husband is trying to reach me and cannot..ouch!)

Instead I think, like my tender Bryophyllum demonstrated to me, we must turn to the SON. If and when I turn- I know the distractions fade, the gold emerges, priorities are reset and I find personal growth and emotional health. It’s in this “turned” posture where I discover, that only His opinion matters.

Only his advice (through His written word) actually benefits me.

Only He creates the right culture around me.

Only He keeps me centred and balanced.

Only He directs my attention to what is truly important in this time span we call our lives.

Would you turn to Him today and everyday?

Footnotes

'I’m a constant learner. You need to be a constant student because things change and you have to change and grow. And I emphasize the word ‘grow.’ ' ~ Zig Ziglar

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FootNotes

'I’m a constant learner. You need to be a constant student because things change and you have to change and grow. And I emphasize the word ‘grow.’ ' ~ Zig Ziglar