Consistent, firm, reliable, durable, solid, dependable, and sturdy all have a common theme, which is strength. We were all introduced as seeds, which means we would have to be planted somewhere to produce or to grow maturely. Herein lies the complexity of our journey through life. In the agricultural world there are many different types of soil that can be used to plant. Whether it’s flowers or vegetables, we must choose our soil in accordance with whatever we are planting. This is a very important step that severely affects the result of production. If we plant seeds in the wrong soil, it could stunt the growth or hinder production altogether. If a farmer takes no thought to the type of soil used, it could greatly affect the overall outcome, which would cause a problem in his or her individual life but would also affect others that are depending on them to produce a harvest. This is how we must view our lives. The environments that we enter are the “soil” that we are planted in. If we choose to ignore the consequences of being in certain environments, it’s just like the farmer who didn’t properly choose the correct soil. What we fill our lives with will become the catalyst to determine the person that we present to the world in our daily lives. As parents, we must take responsibility for the environments that we allow our children to be in. Our children are precious, immature seeds that need to be surrounded by positive, challenging, nurturing, safe, and maturing environments if we want them to become productive citizens of the world. The well-known statement, “What goes in comes out” comes to mind.
With this thought, I’d like to speak on a topic that is close to my heart; Stability is on the menu of discussion today. When I think of stability, it brings to mind something or someone that is readable or set in their ways. I’ve come to learn that just because a person is stable, it doesn't necessarily mean they always do things the same way. A person’s focus can be stable when it comes to a certain thing, but the way that they come to an end result of this certain thing can vary. Much like the planting of seeds, we must be flexible enough to change the methods that we use to get things done in our lives depending on our desired result. Not every situation will require the exact same process. Just because the method changes, it doesn’t mean our focus has shifted. Life can become mundane when we get too comfortable in our routines and don’t look for ways to broaden our thought patterns. A well-balanced person, in my opinion, is one that can have different perspectives and is able to create the best outcome from considering all the possible benefits. Stability is what it takes to achieve greatness in any aspect of one’s life. Without it, we’d never stick around long enough to see if our hypothesis is true or not.
Through the aging process, we are tasked with making decisions based on what we’d like to see in our future. As a child, we didn’t have any say-so as to what type of environment we were in. That was up to our parents. There comes a time in our lives, though, that we can no longer hide behind what we had no voice in and determine within ourselves that we are going to make choices to better our lives so that we can be better for the people that surround us. If we don’t first take care of ourselves, we will not be able to help or defend others that need us in their lives. That’s what life is about, right? Receiving a blessing to be a blessing is the only cycle we should want to be on consistently. This isn’t possible if we don’t hold ourselves accountable for our actions. Whatever may have taken place in our past, whether good or bad, can be used to positively influence our future if we remain focused on ensuring that our surroundings are conducive to positive, beneficial maturity. It’s a process and it does not happen unless we are committed to the change that we want to see.
The fact of the matter is, we will either be stable to the point of destruction or growth. If we’re not going up, we will find ourselves going down. There’s an old saying that “if you’re not going forward, you are going backwards.” Nothing stays the same in this life. So, I challenge every reader to consider where you are now and where you would like to be. With that thought, plan out how you are prepared to make the necessary adjustments in your life to become what you desire. If you are already on track, congratulations! Keep going & remain persistent. If not, now is as good a time as any to change directions & impact your future for the better. None of us have it all together; that’s why we need each other. None of us can know how to do everything well; that’s why it’s important for us to encourage one another to do better. When we all do better, we can all help one another and essentially change this world for the better!