Thrive, not just Survive!

This is my beautiful orchid, taken on a not so cheery March day, but it brought a big smile to my face; not only is it lovely to look at but it made me think about how it got there, and what I can learn from it.

You see, had you seen it 18 months ago, you wouldn’t think it was the same plant. It was a very sad little thing, in a small pot, on another windowsill. I had had it for 3 years at that stage, and after the initial blooms had faded, I was left with just 3 leaves.  I kept watering it, hoping it would flower again for me – and I will be honest that it nearly went in the bin on more than one occasion. But for three years it just had the three leaves, and nothing else – and I can’t say the leaves looked that healthy.

I couldn’t quite give up on it though and throwing away a plant that was alive felt wrong too – as though I was saying it wasn’t worth holding on for it to bloom again. So it stayed on my window sill, tucked in a corner, just existing and not much more.

Then one day I moved everything around, and the orchid ended up on our kitchen windowsill rather than in the lounge – and amazingly it started to thrive – it grew some more leaves (although still not many) and then it started to flower. Just a few blooms the first time, then it shot out numerous new roots, outgrew its plant pot, and looked healthy and strong.

So I still watered it, gave it a new pot, space to grow and develop, plant food to help it on its way –  and then this year…. well, you can see it is a very happy plant! It’s been flowering for over a month, and there is no sign of them dying yet and some signs of new buds too.

It got me thinking about how often a change of situation, whether location, job, relationship, state of mind, whatever it might be, can suddenly make us thrive and grow. It is easy to stay in the same place or situation; sometimes it appears more comfortable than making a change, but it can stifle us, leaving us stunted and a little weary, just like my orchid was.

If we brave the change, embrace the challenge when we recognise that we are stagnant and not thriving, then we can change the place where we are situated, we can find more space to grow and develop and more food for new thought and growth. It may feel uncomfortable to start with but give it a little time and that new situation, attitude or place will become the new normal, your new place to thrive as an individual.

So don’t stay in a situation that has you fading away, unable to thrive – changing aspects of our lives can feel hard, but not changing can prevent us from really showing our true selves.

If you need help overcoming the stagnation in some aspect of your life or support in identifying the way forward for you to thrive, then reach out and we can chat and see if I can help you to grow into the person you were always intended to be.

Make sure you thrive and show off all your beauty.