Pride cometh before the weed.
That is not quite Biblical, but stay with me for a bit.
I had been away from home for three weeks. When I arrived back at the little house on the alley, my flowers were in full look-at-me-now beauty. Then I saw it. A plant I had not planted was now towering over the other plants in one of my flower beds.
I felt so proud that I had grown into such a huge plant, fully strutting its stuff in my front flower bed.
Birds seem to decide what randomly grows in my flower beds. I’ve had an eight-foot-tall sunflower. My flower bed has welcomed a gathering of purple hollyhocks, standing like a choir of beauty. I’m not sure why these randomly-planted-by-the-birds beauties stand so tall, but they definitely demand attention.
As much as I do not take credit for their planting, I might take a bit of pride in their grandeur and growth.
There was no sign of bloom on this six-foot plant, but surely this thing would produce massive, unique blooms. I had no idea what it was, but it got the attention of everyone who walked by our house.
And so, I waited to see what it would produce.
Pride also comes before a healthy dose of reality.
In a few days, Chuck’s sister, Barbara, her daughter, Lynette, and her son-in-law, Dave, would be visiting our house. They are flower-identifying people.
Dave had barely gotten out of the car when he said, “Janet, you know that is a weed, don’t you?” I burst out laughing. I had been so proud of this giant of a plant that I hadn’t thought it might be a weed, not a flower. Dave smiled. “That’s the tallest Marestail I have ever seen.”
Marestail, a.k.a. Horseweed.
It had hidden the beauty of my coleus and begonias. They deserved my attention. They were the real deal. I had spent the last few months watering, feeding, and tending to them. They had been put back in the corner and hidden by the rogue weed.
Photo provided
While researching, I found that Marestail was never informed that it should be eliminated with Roundup herbicide. Some plants have withstood 12 applications of Roundup.
Talk about stubbornness.
Of course, this not-so-jolly green giant got me thinking … and writing.
Do I allow things or people to get my attention that were never supposed to take a prominent place in my life?
Do I allow things or people to complicate my life? Their looks can be deceiving. They can mask themselves as something of importance when they are there to take my attention away from what is important or who is important. They take my time from what really matters.
If nothing else, the Marestail taught me humility and made me rethink what I give my attention to.
As I wrote, pride cometh before the weed, but you may remember the scripture in Proverbs 16:18: Pride goes before destruction. NLT. By the time you read this, the Marestail will have suffered destruction … thus saith my husband, Chuck. And my pride? It’s learned its lesson … until the next growing season. For now, it’s lying dormant.
Janet Hart Leonard can be contacted at janethartleonard@gmail.com or followed on Facebook or Instagram (@janethartleonard). Visit janethartleonard.com.