Finding Your Feet
Date: 9-24-2024
Upon waking each day, the Lord usually drops something in my spirit. Today, it was a distant memory from years ago. A memory of change. An About Face. A complete turnaround. A brand new direction. A time when my life had a significant elevation shift.
Trying to find my feet in a new place, a new house, and experiencing new challenges, I wanted to do everything on my own. That’s what finding your feet is all about, right? It was time I found my independence and did everything for myself. No matter how well you had been taken care of previously, THIS was a matter of pride…. A matter of strength… A matter of willpower. I will become my own adult, whoever that girl is supposed to be….
With all of the recent changes, I had decided to add something else to the mix… LEARNING how to landscape my new courtyard transforming it into my very own outdoor oasis. Something a pampered little princess had no business trying to do on her own without the help of Google and a team of professionals.
I took a gigantic leap off the ledge at Lowes and bought everything in one shopping spree to fill the entire courtyard: a Crape Myrtle tree (yes, a tree, go big or go home), eight shrubs, perennials (four knockout rose topiaries, a large hibiscus and a peony), and annuals with all the beauty and colors of the season. This was quite a task for a Florida girl who thought it would be finished in a day.
Thankfully before I left Lowes, I realized I needed some very specific supplies and equipment for planting so I picked up a straight-edge shovel and a spade in hopes of unearthing the craters of rock lying dormant under my home in the Central Basin of Nashville, TN. No potting soil. No mulch. But I did purchase a garden hose with the forethought of watering everything in the near future. I was so green!
Since this was just going to be a small feat of strength and agility, I had already planned to take my new puppy, Jake, to a nearby dog park when my outdoor oasis was complete at the END OF THE DAY. I unloaded everything all by myself. That alone was a first for me. I changed into my WORK CLOTHES which were really just another set of clean clothes because none of my work clothes had holes or stains on them. I was ready to begin the transformation.
I placed everything exactly where I wanted it planted and picked up my straight-edge shovel and attempted to dig a hole for what seemed like an eternity for one of the shrubs. It was agonizingly difficult. There were anger outbursts. There were flying objects being thrown through the air. There were fingernails flying off in frustration, and that was just the first hour. By the end of the day, my hands were muddied by my tears of torment, but I wasn’t about to give up.
I did what any pampered princess would do, I called for HELP. One of my cousins lived about 2 hours away. Thankfully, Dale felt sorry enough for me to come to my rescue. After he inspected the task at hand and my equipment, he pointed out some obvious deficiencies. Apparently, my straight-edge shovel wasn’t the most effective for gardening even though I thought it was pretty.
As we walked down the isles of Lowes, he introduced me to my first post hole digger and other supplies I would need if I was going to make this a regular habit. Along with the equipment, we picked up potting soil, mulch, and plant food. All the things that any good gardener would need.
We had the courtyard transformed in a day, not the same day, but a day nonetheless. Along the way, we had lots of laughs, probably annoying my next door neighbors in the process. After we were finished, we sat down and enjoyed the wonder of what we had created. It really did become my outdoor oasis. Looking back, it was my place of transformation. My place of habitation. My place of peace. My sanctuary.
So today, just as the Lord encouraged me this morning, I want to encourage you. If you’re in a season where you seem to be finding your feet, don’t stop. Keep going. It’s scary and frustrating, but don’t turn around. The process will bring you to your purpose.
Watch and learn from others who have been assigned to help you. It’s okay to ask for help. Just make sure you participate and learn while working.
Make sure you’ve done enough research so that you have the right equipment and supplies for the task at hand.
Be prepared for the emotions that you unearth in the frustration of walking in the new. It’s not always easy, but it’s worth it.
Don’t take on too much at one time. It’s a learning process, and it’s okay to go slow.
Laugh your way through the adversity of the construction process. Keep your joy in every season of life.
Sit back and enjoy the beauty of the accomplishment. There is beauty even in the ashes.
Prov 4:25-27 ESV
25 Let your eyes look directly forward,
and your gaze be straight before you.
26 Ponder[c] the path of your feet;
then all your ways will be sure.
27 Do not swerve to the right or to the left;
turn your foot away from evil.
Blessings!
Stacey Bryan