For Parents: A lesson from a 2 year-old strawberry patch
Waking up the Strawberries
Along about the middle of March, or early Spring where you live, those hardy Strawberry plants will need a wake up call. Of course they will wake on their own, but without the following procedure, your strawberries will need to push through a thick blanket of dead leaves and vines remaining from the last year. This exercise will remove the majority of the flotsam, leaving the patch fairly open and free to enter full-scale photosynthesis. You will know your strawberries are ready to wake up when you see the first new green leaves emerge.
Choose a windy day for this. The wind at my house is always very accommodating in the spring. In fact, my neighborhood is the unofficial designated spring-training ground for wind. All of those hurricanes that cause havoc in the summer coastal regions got their first practice sessions right here in my backyard. I have found no better use for wind than to blow away unwanted garden debris. If you get a day with the right wind speed in the right direction, your debris may land right where you want it in your vegetable garden spot.
You also need a lawn rake (the flexible kind for raking leaves on grass) and a warm coat and gloves.
Go out to the strawberry patch and stand with the wind at your back. Take a minute to breathe the fresh spring air and reflect on the symbolism of the wind blowing you forward to a bright future. Okay, Enough. It’s too cold for that. Use your rake to gently brush the tops of the strawberry plants just enough that the dead leaves and vines begin to break free and blow away.
Now the strawberries are uncovered from their winter blankets and will happily begin to prepare cheerful white flowers and fat red berries. Help them along with some high nitrogen fertilizer to speed green up and build large leaves. Later in the spring give them a dose of high phosphorus fertilizer to encourage blooms and fruit!
A Spiritual Wake up Call
Strawberries are not the only creatures who need a wake up call. Believe me, I know the joy of dragging my own offspring out of bed on early school-day mornings... each and every morning of the year. It’s a thankless job. But have you ever considered that children need a wake up call not only for their bodies, but for their spirits too? Think about your family’s spirituality. Is your family awake with interest in spiritual things? Do they show love to each other and concern for the world around them? Can they serve others without thinking of rewards? Or are they self-centeredly, spiritually asleep? It may be time for a spiritual wake-up soon.
I have a friend whose husband takes each of their children in turn on a medical service trip to Peru in the summer. They work with their dad as he and his colleagues repair cleft lips and club feet. Those kids get to see first hand the realities of poverty that American kids are generally so insulated from. Her kids spiritually awaken to a new perspective which urges gratitude and prompts kindness.
An experience like this is “once-in-a-lifetime” for my friend’s children but “never-in-a-lifetime” for most of the rest of us. However, other, more simple and more frequent experiences can provide an equal spiritual wake-up call. The experience simply needs to force them to do these three “re’s”: re-think, re-evaluate and remember.
Re-think: the experience should startle them enough to get them out of their “I already know everything” mental state and consider the doubtful reality that they still have something to learn.
Re-evaluate: the experience should cause them to change what they think about their world, to count the blessings they are beginning to see were there all along.
Remember: the experience should bring them closer to God who is the source of all blessings.
Some other examples from my life include:
*My church sponsors occasional workshops for kids age 12-18 with music performances and humorous and inspiring speakers. These workshops present spiritual truths in a way that prompts those three “re’s” in teenagers. My kids come away with a new perspective and a new determination to live a moral and productive life. I have heard these workshops called “life-changing.” I agree. Each time these are offered, I encourage my kids to attend.
*I have read the “Little House” books to my daughters. Those books open their eyes to the way things used to be, the struggles and privation of the people who laid the foundation of our nation. The stories would never persuade them to give up their Nintendo Wii, but maybe they are a little more grateful as their Mario leaves Luigi in the dust.
*My husband and I have taken the time to drive our children to see historical places that are significant to our family. The children realize that the way things are today are not the only way things have been done and not necessarily even the best way.
*While on vacation we always try to visit places that are significant to our religion be it historical homes or churches or temples. The children get the idea that worshiping God is a common practice, a tradition that we should honor.
*It is our dream to someday visit the birthplaces of freedom in America with our children. We want to show them where my ancestor lived in Plymouth Plantation, where my ancestor died at Bunker Hill, Independence Hall, the battlefields at Gettysburg, and at Vicksburg where my ancestor is buried; to see where my husband’s ancestor came through Ellis Island and historical and important monuments, buildings and artifacts that make up the historic district of Washington D.C. We hope a trip such as that will instill pride in their country and a resolve to never let go of the gift of freedom. Not for anything.
Is there a new book you could read to/with your kids? Is there a special place they need to see? Are they in touch with their ancestors? Brainstorm ways to startle your kids into waking up spiritually. Then make sure it happens.
Then stand by as the breezy Spirit of God carries away the deadening flotsam of worry, rejection and discouragement in their hearts so the brilliant Love of God may shine gently down. It will remind them of who they are and add to the vision of who they may become. Soon after, you will see blossoming kindness and the fruits of love and respect in your children.
