There's a plum tree in my front garden. Right next to my letterbox. I went to check the mailbox yesterday morning as I'm waiting on some books to arrive.
I have nothing to read at the moment, and whilst I wait, I am tragically reading Twilight for the fourth time.
I adore the Twilight novels. But I must say I was bitterly disappointed when I got to the last book, waiting desperately for Bella and Edward to consummate their relationship. It almost happened in the third book. The "leg hitch" scene had me ramp up my reading speed.
The tension between the characters, and also myself as the reader, was palpable. The chapter preceding the consummation was so beautifully written. I was on the edge of my seat, reading the pages at a frantic pace, awaiting the moment when the two characters finally get it on.
I got to the end of the chapter, where Bella undressed, and met a naked Edward in the water. I flicked the page, excited to begin the next chapter. This is what I'd been waiting for.
Only there was barely a mention of their sexual romp.
It merely said "I woke up the next day...". I flicked the pages backwards. Did I miss something? Had someone torn the pages out? I checked the sequence of the page numbers. Nope. All there.
What a goddamn let down.
I suppose it was a young adult novel after all, and the author was not about to go into great detail like an erotic novelist might. But that is what I was hoping for. I suppose that's why "Fifty Shades Of Grey" was so popular. It gave the adult fans of the Twilight series what they were after. And then some. I recall reading "Fifty Shades" on a flight from Sydney to LA. There were certain parts that were so risqué that my mouth literally popped open, and I had to shield my fellow passengers from the things I was reading.
As usual I've gone off the topic.
So back to the plum tree.
I was startled by a Rosella perched on one of the branches on the tree as I opened the lid of the letterbox. It was in there amongst the foliage eating the plums which have mostly ripened now, some of which have now dropped to the ground.
And of course it made me think. Everything makes me think. I wish I was some ditzy bimbo whose train of thought was limited to organising my next hair appointment or something equally as vapid.
I looked at the plums scattered around the base of the tree. These plums had dropped off the branches once they were ready. Not before. If I were to go and remove these plums when they were still green, they would not have been ready to consume. They would not have ripened yet.
Nature teaches us to be patient. To wait until the time is just right.
I recall as a child that we used to grow carrots in the garden. My sister and I used to go down to the garden each morning and check to see if the carrots were ready to be uprooted from the ground.
My mother would get so angry with us. We used to see the orange tops of the carrots peeking through the soil and assume it was time to indeed pluck them from the ground.
Patience is not generally a virtue of children. Upon yanking them up, whilst on the garden bed surface they appeared to be ready, they were only the size of our pinkies and my Mum would yell at us and tell us to just leave the garden alone. They were not ready at all.
In life, the same principles apply. If you do things before the time is right, before you are ready, you will not get the best possible result.
If you were to pluck one of those plums from the tree, before the time was just right, yes, sure, you'll still have the plum, but it won't be as sweet and ripe as if you possessed the virtue of patience.
If Edward and Bella in Twilight had gotten it on any sooner, it may not have been as spectacular as the author never bothered to describe (that's a lie - she did describe it - just not in a Christian Grey type of style).
So today's lesson?
Have the patience to wait for the right moment. Until the time is right for you. The right moment to decide, to act, to be fearless, to speak your truth. Have the patience to allow the necessary changes and maturity to help to evolve properly.
If you don't feel ready to do something, wait until you do. Only you know when you'll be ready. Follow your heart and your intuition. Only then will you get the sweetest result.
And as Paulo Coelho says "life is always waiting for the right moment to act".