Not Everything

Today I enjoyed a lovely little flair moment while admiring my blooming orchid. What astonishing beauty! But then I leaned in to smell the bloom.

Such disappointment! My variety of orchid does not smell very fragrant at all. But this is intended; I learn that some orchids attract pollinators in other ways: through mimicking pheromones, through dripping sweet nectar, and through displaying gorgeous color. Humans might not smell what insects can smell.

Oh, but how I wanted that bright pink and purple orchid to smell sticky-sweet and full of springtime as the winter snow and ice fell around my house today! But then I realized that she can’t be everything. She’s beautiful but not fragrant. Some flowers are fragrant but not beautiful. I let them be as they are and accept the thing they offer.

Even nature teaches us that one need not be everything. 

I did think of what we offer in any situation. We don’t have to be everything. We can be just one thing, and that’s wonderful, beautiful, and intended for us.