Plant Manager

I was given a plant a few months ago when I moved into my new apartment.  I’ve never owned a plant before.  I once had some moldy bread, so that’s kind of like having a really low maintenance plant, but it’s not the sort of thing people give to one another as a housewarming gift.

My friend’s mom once told him that he’d be ready for a relationship when he could keep either a plant or a pet alive.  A few weeks later he proudly declared that he was ready for a relationship because he’d gone out and bought… a cactus.  Aside from moldy bread, that’s probably the greatest low maintenance organism possible.  Well played.

Plants are harder in some ways than pets.  A puppy will howl when it wants out of its kennel, it pees on the carpet and requires your attention, and begs when it’s hungry or sees my food.  It provides obvious feedback and I must react.  I may not react properly, but I have to do something.  A plant is much more subtle.  It doesn’t say anything.  It doesn’t move unless the fan is blowing on it.  It will never complain.  It will never tell me what I’m doing wrong.  It will just show me, but I have to look for it.

So, I have owned my plant for several months, and while it grew a small amount, it didn’t flourish by simply being in my presence the way I had imagined it should.  Vain and narcissistic?  You betcha.  Selfish?  That’s me.  Here’s what I’ve learned:

1. Plants require good soil.  I needed to put it into a big pot with plenty of room to grow, with gravel in the bottom for the proper drainage, and good soil where the roots can spread out.
2. Plants require sunlight.  It’s a sunless palm, but it’s not a mushroom.  It needs to be kept in a prominent place to get the light it needs throughout the day.  Light is a good thing.
3. Plants require attention.  I have to keep my eye on the plant, checking to see if it’s growing or not, admiring the new growth, and pruning the dead or dying chutes.  I know how I’m doing only by seeing if it’s growing or dying.
4. Plants requires that little something extra.  I bought some fertilizer because even good soil needs a boost.  Being inside, it was only going to get that boost from me and not from nature.  I had to make the investment.  It was only $10 for a bottle of mystery nutrients, but that means that’s one less time I can go out for dinner.  The investment was coupled with worthwhile sacrifice.  Keeping that plant alive is more important than me eating a gourmet hamburger (with bacon and jalapenos).
5. Plants require consistency.  For the plant to grow, I needed to turn it periodically to face the sun.  I needed to set up a schedule to water it and not just do so when I happened to think about it or saw a bunch of dead leaves and once again try to resurrect it.  Once it got back on track, I had to keep doing the same things that got it growing in the first place.

I suppose I could sing to my plant as some people recommend, but like I said, I'm not trying to kill it.

It’s the same for friendships and relationships, and it reveals my ignorance.  People respond to me when I invest in them, just as I respond to people who invest in me.  Some plants, and friendships, are hardier than others, but those are the rare exception.  The vast majority require investment, consistency, attention, room to grow, and exposure to good things.  The best ones get that little something special. 

The plant gives me almost nothing in return, yet I invest in it.

I’m 35 years old and it is taking a plant, a small sunless palm, to teach me selflessness.

 

Growing.

JRH

Comments

[Jason Hayes]

well said! I like! And now I am going out to buy a plant?

[Andrew Steger]

I've read every single one of your posts and I am captivated and enriched by your writing style and insight. You do a fantastic job of relating tangible items to abstract situations and attitudes.
However, there is one line of this post I think will be changed in the near future. Your line was "The plant gives me almost nothing in return, yet I invest in it." Just wait until one day, whether it be after dinner, or after a run, when you catch yourself sitting, drinking a glass of water, just staring at the plant, thinking about something profound and completely irrelevant to a sunless palm. Over time, it will provide a tranquility and an atmosphere of relaxation and peace to think about your next insightful post!

Keep up the good work, Joel!

[Cindy Willmarth]

You never cease to amaze me Hayes! I am reading through these blogs and it is exactly what I needed today. Love Ya!