Have you ever repotted a plant? A plant will stop growing when it’s reached its full capacity in a small pot. It’s roots have taken up all the space in the soil that is available and it’s stems and leaves have taken up as much space as they are able given the size pot it’s in. As long as it has a source of light and water it continues to live just as it is, not growing or shrinking, just staying the same. But take that plant and repot it into a larger pot and watch what happens! It grows! New bits start to burst out from the ground, the leaves get greener, fuller, wider, reach farther. It expands and takes up as much space as it’s given.
"Houseplants and Clean Air" by Chiot's Run used under CC BY 2.0
Do you need a new, bigger pot? Are you longing to replant yourself into something that will allow you to grow? Sometimes we need to uproot ourselves and find a new pot to grow in. That pot could be anything: a new job, a new location, a new relationship, a new hobby, a new class, a new dream, or it could be something simple like a new perspective, a new attitude.
Here’s the catch though, when you take that plant out of it’s old pot, it is vulnerable. You’re suppose to shake out the roots a little, stimulate the bottom of the plant so when you put it into new fresh soil it will take root. It’s also important to give it water right after replanting it into that bigger pot with all that new soil. The water helps to stimulate the roots, it makes the energy of the plant active, able to feed on the new materials, winding its way around this new territory.
It’s the same in our lives, we must be mindful of how vulnerable we are in the midst of transition. We can just pick up and go, we can move to a new location, we can change jobs, we can make new friends, we can get a new life. We can shove ourselves into a new pot. But unless we tend to ourselves, unless we water ourselves, unless we give ourselves the sunshine we need, we won’t take root. We won’t grow like we need to. We will continue to create the same situations with the same kinds of people over and over again because we’re still living in the old pot in our mind.
The replanting isn’t just finding a new pot, the real task is caring for ourselves and our dreams once we’ve made the transition and being patient with our rate of growth. Go easy on yourself. Sometimes we want to be big already, we want to fill up the new pot right from the getgo, but as you know with a plant, it takes time, you can’t pull the green shoots out of the ground before they’re ready to come forth. We must wait…but the waiting isn’t idle. We are consistently watering it, exposing it to sunlight, and giving it love. We are actively caring for ourselves and our dreams which needs to be acknowledged as progress in and of itself. Just because you can’t see the results yet, doesn’t mean it isn’t growing. We must have faith and trust the plant will grow if we are tending to it properly.
And if consistently cared for you will soon see the results of your patience and labor. It will continue to grow…and grow and grow until one day you have to replant it again, or move it outside because it’s too big for your house!
What's been your experience of replanting yourself? Share in the comments below.