Wounds of Neglect
When you look at this cactus the first thing you probably notice is that it is imperfect. It’s tall and healthy, but uneven in size from its base to its top.
This is my cactus. I rescued it from Walmart some years ago when it was only about an inch tall and a half inch in diameter. It was obvious that they had not watered it in a while. Its soil was so dry that it had separated from the wall of the pot. The cactus was very young and already looked pale from thirst.
At home, I nursed it back to health. Its color changed from almost yellow to green, and it grew in width and height. Then something happened. I did not pay it as much attention anymore. I was busy with work and myself and started to water it infrequently. It never occurred to me to give it some plant food. I bet, looking at the photo, you can tell at which point in the cactus’ life this happened.
My spiritual path, however, redirected my attention to it and to all my other plants, for that matter. Plants and animals are living beings just like us. And they suffer just like us. I could no longer ignore my cactus and water and feed it only when I happened to think of it. Of course, as one might expect, it reacted to the renewed TLC treatment by gaining in size and weight and growing straight and tall.
Lesson learned: A living being may be marked for life by unfavorable experiences or conditions, but it CAN recover its health with some TLC and reach its potential. As domesticated as so many plants and animals often are, they may always be dependent on humans to give them the care they need. After all, where else would a house plant get its water from? But once humans reach adulthood, they are typically no longer dependent on caretakers. At this point they have the option to give themselves the care and love they may not have gotten earlier in life and still reach for the stars.
Thank you for this beautiful post, Andelieya. Everything is part of us , (at the sub atomic level) and needs our loving compassion.
Thanks, Mary! Some spiritual models teach us that all is one, and we need to overcome the illusion of duality. If all is one, then all that I do, I also do onto myself. I’m still gabbling with the full meaning and consequences of this teaching.
Your final conclusions are very valid. Although it is important to remember there are some humans who never attain that level of independence or attain it but lose it through misfortune or ill health.
PS I don’t have a green thumb and always thought cacti needed little water and TLC, such that they could survive in arid conditions.
Yes, Lignum Draco, it is true there are always exceptions. It is indeed very unfortunate if a human being can not escape an unloving, uncaring environment due to health issues or misfortune.
Little did I know myself about what cacti need, but my cactus taught me. I am glad that I listened. 🙂
Thanks for your comment! I hope life is good in Australia! We are getting ready for winter here. So you must be getting ready for summer, right?
Yes, 3 days away now, although we’ve already had glimpses of it during the Spring.