Growth rate and perspective

Check out me and my buddy. We were born the same year - give or take. (You're never sure with Joshua Trees.) They grow anywhere from a half to three inches per year, but the ranger told me about an inch a year on average. So that makes us the same age. (He would be taller but has part of his feet hidden in the dirt.) And even though we've been around the same number of years so far, this guy will way outlive me and grow into a majestic and impressive structure.

I have appreciated learning about these amazing trees this past week. There is so much we can learn about, and from, the world around us! We share this planet with an innumerable variety of other life forms, plant and animal; and we are dependent on them for our ongoing existence. (I'm not sure about where mosquitos fit in though.)

One of the great lessons to be learned from this particular life-form is that growth is often delayed and gradual. An inch a year for a tree is pretty slow. Average humans grow as high in their first 20 years of life as a Joshua can grow in 70. On the other hand, I read that an "Empress Splendor" or foxglove tree (botanical name Paulownia tomentosa), a hardwood, grows 20 feet in its first year! Under ideal conditions, bamboo has been known to grow an inch every 40 minutes or 3 feet in one day! On the other hand, Joshua Trees are estimated to live well over 500 years and eventually FAR surpass us in height, as do most trees.

We humans don't all grow at the same rate - physically, as well as intellectually, emotionally, spiritually, etc. I was pretty socially awkward in my youth, but I survived and eventually figured things out. Some of us take longer than others to figure the world out, to memorize facts, to learn a skill, to establish a relationship, etc. Others are gifted with "natural ability" in these same areas.

And just as not all trees are the same height, not all of us reach the same heights in these areas of human development either. Sometimes we have to accept our limitations, as long as we do our best and don't give up.

But in the long run, we'll get there. I #GiveThanks for the blessing of perspective. It's OK if I'm a little slower at something. For the things that really matter, we all have a LOT of time (on the eternal scale) to figure things out and become the best we can. We just need to stay firmly connected to the right kind of nourishment and avoid destructive elements that can bring us down!