Thursday, March 19, 2009

My Year of Hopefulness - Peace Lily

I've killed every plant I've ever tried to care for. Even a cactus. I overwater and pay too much attention to them. They actually make me nervous. I obsessively nurture them to the point of killing them. It's odd really - plants make their own food. They really don't need me and as I force myself on them, I see them wilt before my eyes. Caring for plants brings out all my insecurities.  

I thought my peace lily, one of the three plants on Earth that my local florist tells me I cannot possibly kill, had kicked the bucket. It was looking sad and pathetic. Limp, yellowing, and with one foot in the chlorophyll grave. I was about to throw it out and decided to give it just a bit more water to see if I could revive it. And I sang to it. Seriously, I belted out a few songs because I heard a long time ago that plants respond to music. Why not give it a shot?

By some miracle, I was able to revive the peace lily and now it is thriving. I only water the plant when the soil is dry. No fertilizer. No special treatment, aside from the singing. I do sing to it every day. And it's working. This plant taught me that it might not be the amount of care that you pay to something, but the kind of care. Give everything only what it needs. 

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