Meditations On The Weed

Pot-heads, you can stop reading now.

The weed in question is not the one that makes you happy.

It's the one that gets gardeners and farmers mad.

The one that keeps them on their toes.

And laughs in the face of Ortho, Round-up, Bronco, Rodeo and Weed-off.

Out Persnickety Weed!

Don't you sometimes wonder -

We struggle to keep precious animals like the giant panda, the gazelle, the African rhinoceros and the Indian tiger from becoming extinct.

Yet weeds, household pests, crop pests, bacteria and viruses continue to flourish.

In spite of our burning desire to wipe them off the face of the earth.

And all the technology and laboratory chemistry we bring to bear.

Is there a lesson here?

An Aha Moment, Or What?

Maybe our inspiration to achieve our dreams, or keep going when times get tough...

Should come...

Not from the fragile flowers which bloom for a while, and then fade.

All the while, needing the perfect blend of water, sun and soil.

But from the weeds that...

Against all odds...

...thrive and survive.

Here then are the lessons to be learned from the never-say-die weed.

Fear not the enemy's might 

Or did David get inspired by the weed when he went up against Goliath?

Every year, it's the same story in gardens and farmland across the world.

A huge amount of ammunition is deployed to banish weeds .

Weed wackers and weed killers of every kind.

Each new invention with more vanquishing power than the last.

But, as faithful as the sunrise, the weeds come up again.

They fear not the enemy's might.

And know they can overtake anything and everything.

David and Goliath

Which makes you wonder - 

Did David get inspired by the weed when he decided to take on Goliath?

Who would go up against a barbaric 9 foot giant with just a catapult (English for lance-pierres)?

You can read the story of David's great leap of faith, here.

And then you can meditate on the humble weed.

I'm just saying.

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again

Or did Colonel Sanders get inspired by the weed?

You've probably heard the saying - "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again."

It was written by an 18th century American educator.

By the name of Thomas Palmer.

Thomas Palmer wrote this line in a book he called Teacher's Manual.

You can take a peek at Teacher's Manual on Google books here.

Col. Sanders and Kentucky Fried Chicken 

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

Is this what Colonel Sanders, founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken, repeated to himself?

As he went from restaurant to restaurant to find a taker for his fried chicken idea.

He didn't have any luck until he met the 1009th restaurateur.

What kept him going?

How could you possibly emulate that kind of persistence?

Do you wake up every day with amnesia like the girl in the Adam Sandler movie 50 First Dates?

Amnesia would be helpful!

Or do you pluck a weed from your garden and say - "Hmmm....I'm not going to give up just yet.  I am going to persist like this weed...

...look how unfailingly it comes up. In spite of everything!

I wonder whether Col. Sanders..."

I'm just saying.

Everything You Need To Succeed Is Inside Of You

Or did Mahatma Gandhi get inspired by the weed?

Do you know the story of how India won its independence from the British Raj?

It was due in no small measure to a man called Gandhi.

Dressed in nothing but a loin-cloth, and armed with only the novel idea of peaceful non-cooperation, Gandhi led his countrymen and country women in peaceful marches and peaceful boycotts against British rule.

Until they capitulated in 1947.

Walk In Gandhi's Footsteps

Gandhi has been a role model and inspiration to those who seek justice or freedom ever since.

Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela, among others.

The personal lesson we can take from Gandhi, (which by the way is breath-takingly captured in the 1982 Richard Attenborough Oscar-sweeping film of the same title) is this...

...we have everything we need to succeed within ourselves.

We just have to look for it.

Which brings me back to the weed. And how nothing will stop it.

Not absence of sunshine. Lack of water. Poor soil conditions. Or inhospitable temperatures.

It contains everything it needs for its victory within itself.

So if you want to channel Gandhi, or Col. Sanders or King David...

...is the way to do it to meditate on the humble, hardy weed?

I'm just saying.

P.S.  I know this post is off the beaten path.  I sometimes like to go there.  It helps me focus on the timeless and the universal.  So thanks for reading. If you want to find out what the World Wildlife Fund is doing to preserve the animals and birds at risk of becoming extinct, you can do so here.  You may also be interested in seeing what the Wildlife Conservation Trust is doing in India.  The Wildlife Conservation Trust is an Indian NGO and you can link to their website, which has beautiful pics of Indian wildlife sanctuaries, here.