Perhaps, you understand the frustration of knowing that there is a seed planted and knowing that you are investing time and effort trying to bring something to life, but not seeing any promising results. Sure, you recognize a little growth here and there, but its nothing like you envisioned. When the seed (dream, hope, vision) was first planted, you imagined these huge plants bearing great fruit. So much so, that you would be able to feed not only yourself but others as well.  Day after day, you look, you water, you weed, you wait.

I’ve experienced that frustration, and it was compounded because of the weeds.  I understood from the beginning that for the seed to thrive, I had to get rid of the weeds. Even when the weeds were the only green that I could see (in that regard, they were comforting), and it seemed like a never-ending battle to get rid of them, I knew I had to be persistent.  I knew the weeds would choke out the seeds and keep the promise of good fruit from coming to pass.  Sometimes, I was tricked by the color or shape of the weed into thinking that they were something other than what they were. Sometimes, it was tempting to see the weeds as something that I just had to accept and let hang around (you know…something is better than nothing), but I knew that if I let the weeds stay they would damage and maybe even eliminate what I had been working for.  So, when I would see the green of the weed above ground, I would pluck it out. But the frustrating part was that I’d pluck it out in one space one day, and it would show up somewhere else the next. What do you do when the weeds keep coming?

One day, I was pulling a weed, but instead of plucking it from the top of the soil, I decided to dig into the soil a little bit.  And when I did, I found that the weed had long roots.  I followed the roots of the weed, which ultimately led me to another weed in a different space in the garden.  By just looking, I wouldn’t have noticed that they were connected.  But when I decided to dig a little deeper, I realized that there was a whole system underneath the surface that was keeping the weeds alive.  So, my plucking a weed here or there wasn’t doing any significant damage because they were connected to a system that was thriving beneath the surface.  I realized that the system of weeds was there before my seed of hope was planted. So, they were doing all that they could do to remain alive and active.  They continued to build their network underneath until there was an opportune moment to break through and wreak havoc in the garden. This is the case for many of us who are carrying seeds (dreams, hopes, vision) within us.  We are becoming frustrated because rather than seeing trees and fruit, we’re seeing more and more weeds.  Dig a little deeper.  You can’t get rid of the weed on the surface and think you are all clear.  There were systems of weeds planted before we realized we had a seed within us.  These weeds were intended to choke out the greatness that you were purposed and destined to bring forth.

Now, I am not going to say that its easy to get rid of all the weeds, but I am saying that it is worthwhile to try.  The more weeds you get rid of the more room you create for good fruit. And I have to be honest in saying that sometimes those systems of weeds run deep. In the garden, they show up as sprouts here and there; in our daily lives, they show up as systemic, institutionalized racism, sexism, and any other ism you can imagine.  They show up as generational poverty, abuse, and addiction. They show up as low self-esteem, uncontrolled anger, deceitfulness and manipulation.  They show up.

You might have to do some serious digging, and in some cases, some of what has been planted may get a bit damaged, but the potential of them bouncing back is much greater if you get rid of the weeds. You might have to dig today, tomorrow, and again next week, but don’t stop.  Digging weeds in the heat of the day was not my vision of gardening, but it was a part of the journey.  And I am committed to getting to the good fruit for myself and for others, so weeds, you got to go!