Orchids for Inspiration!

Think of an orchid. What comes to your mind?

I've always thought of orchids as inspiring and very special. They look fragile yet perfectly designed...with a kind of elegant refinement. For me, orchids have always been exotic, exquisite and classy... not your ordinary flower!

Orchids didn't grow in Western Pennsylvania where I grew up. Gardens there were filled with zinnias, daisies, and other easy-to-grow flowers. We only saw orchids in expensive corsages imported for Mother's Day.

The first orchid plants I ever saw up close were grown by a friend. She had multiple varieties and could recite all their botanical names! Her collection was stunning. She belonged to the local orchid society. I was inspired... Yet, I was also intimidated with the thought of trying to grow one-- let alone her ten or twelve!

My next exposure to live orchids was as a gift. I had gone to Trinidad, West Indies to teach and admired the orchids growing everywhere. Soon, my supervisor handed me an orchid bouquet and welcomed me to the island! I enjoyed that bouquet and the orchids outside my apartment. No wonder the orchids grew so well, I thought... Life here was slow and sweet. There was sun, warmth, and plenty of rain. All too soon, though, I had to leave... and that made me sad.

Years later, when I went on a trip to Hawaii, I saw more orchids. They were nothing short of magnificent. My attitude remained "look and enjoy but don't touch... and don't even begin to think about taking one home."

And yet, one day before we left to return to the mainland, I saw a collection of flower photographs offered at a reasonable price. My luggage soon contained professional quality photos of orchids and other tropical flowers. My surroundings would be filled with images of the tropics I love.

Apparently, I am not the only one inspired by orchids. Last week, I met Bill Strickland, the founder and chief energizer of the Manchester-Bidwell Corporation in Pittsburgh, PA. Bill believes you can Make the Impossible Possible. In my reading before the trip I learned that Bill, too, liked orchids. But, unlike me, he was determined

to grow them. He'd also decided that kids from the inner city with little hope for the future could be trained to grow orchids and to learn a marketable profession in the process!

While visiting, I saw that vision brought to life. The orchid sign "A Legacy of Inspiration" is found at the entrance to the greenhouses. For Strickland's kids, the orchids represent new possibilities, new promises of what the future can hold. After I got back home and saw that photo I started thinking...Perhaps the orchids could be a legacy of inspiration for me?

So this morning, I headed to a local nursery...The same one I've visited for inspiration when I miss the islands. This time though, I planned to bring one of the orchids home. How hard could it be to grow one anyway? My close friend in Raleigh had managed to move an orchid from state to state as her family moved. If she could do it why couldn't I?

Perhaps all along I had some misconceptions about orchids...The woman at the greenhouse, told me that orchids are easy-to-grow and don't take a lot of fuss as long as you know what they like (indirect light, not much water, and definitely no "wet feet"!) So, it was settled. I picked out a beautiful orchid and headed home.

Having that orchid sit in my sunroom gives me a certain satisfaction.

I recognize that my wrong assumptions about orchids- and other things?- are created by me. But I also realize that I can grow beyond what seemed impossible in the past. Now I have my own "Legacy of Inspiration", an orchid that lives right here in North Carolina with me!

Welcome to Inspirations!

Each and every day we make choices about how to approach dilemmas and make decisions, about what to pay attention to and what to set aside. Choices and change go together... There is no shortage of either one in modern life!!!

Change, while uncomfortable, is simply a given. The style of our choice-making isn't. Our choices shape a positive or negative outlook on life and move us on some path. Amazingly, we can choose to look for things that inspire us and move us in a great direction!!!

For instance, we can see this day as full of vibrant possibilities (like the flowers side of the path shown) or we can focus on the mundaneness and same-old, same-old routine (like the weeds side of this path.) How we focus our attention is important... Albert Einstein is credited as saying, "There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle."

Don't know about you, but given that kind of choice, I want to live a miracles-type life! I will choose to watch for inspirations to keep me motivated, vibrant, and fully alive. I will choose to move forward and grow and develop newness for as long as my feet touch this great earth!

Chris Gardner, the man whose inspiring story is told in the movie The Pursuit of Happyness, writes, "The lesson that you can take what you've got- no matter how minuscule it may seem to be- and use your innate powers of ingenuity, together with hard work and focus, and make something meaningful of yourself and your life... speaks to the power of creating miracles that's given to each of us." (p. 37)

This blog is all about choices of daily life and sources of inspiration so that you can use what you have and what comes your way to create new possibilities- sometimes miraculous possibilities. My hope is that the topics found here will be meaningful to you and that you'll also be willing to share your own stories. Welcome readers!