In looking out the window, the sky is leaden gray today and the air around the freezing mark, but the farmers’ fields in front of the house are still mostly a deep green. Yesterday I braved the cold and planted a few dozen tulip bulbs, my favourite flower. It’s pretty miraculous that these flower bulbs can lie dormant all winter under the deep snow in frigid temperatures and then flourish in the relative heat of a Nova Scotian spring. Amazing, I think.
As I topped off the beds where I’d planted the bulbs with loose straw, it made me think of my own insulation needs. I too need lots of airy padding to survive our winter outdoors. A puffy down filled coat, thick boots, thick gloves, a woolen hat and definitely a scarf.
Then there will be the days I walk the dogs during a blizzard out on the dykes. That requires more puffiness. I’ve done photo shoots on those days. I wear my Avalanche padded ski pants, a Helly Hansen parka that protects my face from the raging winds that blast only inches away from its large fur trimmed hood, arctic weight gloves, felt lined boots, and of course the several layers of clothing I wear with a scarf and hat. Yes, puffiness helps during a blizzard.
We rely on so much to survive. We insist on such a narrow window of comfort, both in temperature and in many other categories. We need ample food, fresh air, pure water, sleep, nurturing, etc., or we shrivel up and perish. Sounds like we have more in common with tulips than I might have realized.
Tulips, a flower that literally drove men made at one point in its long history, require a deep well loamed bed, bone meal, humus rich soil, inches of space surrounding each bulb, and even feeding of more nutrients once the plant nears flowering. And then, tulips only flourish for a few years at most.
Make the most of your few years on the planet. Even a life of 100 years can seem quite brief I imagine. In tulip years perhaps not, but no matter how long our lives are, we all need to embrace the time we have and make the most of it. Make a pact with yourself today. Agree to laugh out loud proclaiming your joy for the gift of your life. Hunker down in difficult times, insulate yourself from adversity and then grow steadily, and flower.
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