Recently I bought a shirt that says, “Everything blooms in its own time”. It is not the first time I have heard or seen this quote, but it is the first time I gave it a second thought and delved a bit deeper into how I relate to it.
I have never thought of myself as slower than my peers because I never experienced myself that way. I just thought of myself as me. In retrospect though, I see now that I am definitely slower to “bloom” in certain respects and also that I am very much ahead in other respects. I know, comparison is the thief of joy, but it is also a useful measuring tool for self-development.
My best friend and I work at the same school. I started there a year before her. I am now in my sixth year of teaching there and she is in her fifth. After 6 months she was trusted with more responsibilities than I was in a year and a half. She knew the other teachers, were comfortable in the staff room and confidently managed some of the rugby teams while I was still finding my way and spending most of my breaks in my own class, because I was not sure how and where I fit into the whole scheme of things. At some point it almost got the better of me, seriously making me wonder whether I was in the right place.
This is just one example. I recognise many other situations and scenarios like this from my past and I might even be in the slow blooming process of something right now that I am unaware of. But the focus should not be on me or you or anyone else being slower to bloom than someone else with whatever. The focus should be on having faith in the process. The conviction of things not seen. I love those words, they live in me, the conviction of things not seen. We must have the patience to endure and the faith to not become discouraged. I am always so enamoured when I see a plant bringing forth a flower or a new leaf. I knew something was happening, I just couldn’t see it.
I sometimes still wonder whether I am in the right place. Who doesn’t? But whether you are in the right place or on a slight detour, you must learn or choose to trust the process and back yourself. I never doubted that I would catch up to my friend. I just didn’t know how long it would take me. I think I’m a little past blooming now, nearing what I would describe as the well-established plant phase, but well-established plants still bloom in season. I leave you with the lyrics from one of my favourite Hillsong songs.
I know Though the winter is long,
even richer the harvest it brings Though my waiting prolongs even greater Your promise for me like a seed I believe that my season will come.
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