Over summer, regular walks in nature form the bulk of my meditation practice. They ground me and remind me of my connection to all that is. So when I walk, I trust anything which captures my attention has the potential to be a message from Spirit.
This morning, toward the end of my walk, I became aware of bindweed. All along the field road alongside the sunny meadow, trumpet-like white blossoms dotted the landscape. A whole field of bindweed climbed the stalks of its hosts – so beautiful, yet cutting off the life force of the other plants, stunting their growth.
I realized how like life this is. Anywhere in our lives we hold on too tightly, we cut off growth.
And I reflected on some of the common places we as humans typically cling and grasp – to our past, the old stories and wounds which still have power over us. To our ideas of how things “should be,” even when these ideas serve as a yardstick against which we fall short time and time again. To old dreams and beliefs that feel so familiar we hang on to them out of habit, even though they no longer serve us.
By clinging so tightly to these places, we remain rooted in the past. The past sucks up our attention and our focus, leaving no energy for welcoming growth into our lives.
And this prompted a heartfelt prayer:
Spirit, help me open and see where I am like the bindweed, clinging too tightly in my life and stunting my growth. Help me gently unwind the threads of the past and the tendrils of old beliefs which no longer serve me. Help me open my heart to the flow of energy and movement in my life. Help me breathe deeply and savor what is. Help me welcome the blossoming.