A couple of years ago when I was a “training specialist” I came across a wonderful quote that really made a lot of sense to me.
“Like farmers we need to learn that we cannot sow and reap the same day” ~unknown
We all want that magic pill that will just fix everything. The 24-hour solution to our problems. It is evident in many of the things we do and attempt. If the solution does not come fast enough, we drop that and move on to the next big thing.
I was so guilty of this complex early on in my marketing career. I still suffer from this but not near as bad.
In my journey as a father, I have been looking for a method to teach my daughters the importance of patience. I want them to be aware of the process of learning anything new. My goal is for them to be able to realize that if they want something, they must allow themselves the ability to fail and continue to push through despite these perceived failures.
A friend of mine told me about gardening and how it is a great metaphor for life. This immediately reminded me of the quote. Come on, everyone knows anything worth having in life takes blood, sweat, and tears. We won’t appreciate what we get unless work for it. And frankly, there’s no way around it… you have to respect the process.
The Garden of Aguirre
So a few months back I determine we are going to keep a little garden. I begin to explain the principles of gardening (those few that I know). Fe had already been receiving some information from her teacher at school and loved the idea of having a garden. Diva was all over it. Anything her sister does she can do better.
A couple of little cherry tomato plants were donated by their grandparents. Everything was good for a couple of weeks, but then something happened. Daddy forgot to water the plants when they were gone. They came back a couple of weeks later and found their plant dead. Not good.
They were obviously not happy with me. “Daddy, did you water the plants?”
Guilt was the obvious emotion I felt that entire first day. They eventually forgave me.
New Garden of Aguirre
A couple of weeks ago we go to Target and Fe decides she wants to buy a little planter with seeds and dirt. Precious moment.
We rush home and put it together. Dirt in planter. Seeds pushed firmly in dirt. It was pretty dang exciting. We have cared for the plant. This past weekend they show up and realize that their baby plant is growing and jump through the ceiling. 🙂
They have seen the progress. Fe consistently waters her baby and Anastacia helping alongside her.
So, the funniest thing happened this past weekend as they were leaving me again. Fe reminds me to water their plant. Of course, I agree. She places it on the window so it can receive the sunlight it needs to grow.
Yesterday I noticed that I hadn’t watered the plant and realize something of epic proportions! Not only was I reminded to take care of the plant, but I was also given a watering thing full of water to make sure I followed through.
Whoa!
My daughters know I am a forgetful fool. Ooops! Yet, they made sure they left me with the proper tools to make sure I did not kill their beloved plant.
So, what does Daddy do? I had to take a picture of it. I am a proud papi. Can you tell?
