second bloom

as i walked through the rose garden across the street from our home i overheard two little old ladies talking about roses and their second bloom this season.  they discussed how important it was to first trim off the dead leaves and then cut back the healthy shoots by about one third.  and then there is the deadheading process they started conversing about in extreme amount of detail.  that is when i trailed off to play with my camera lens' as not to appear odd and stalkerish.  but this whole 'second bloom' thing stuck with me throughout the rest of the day and started to turn itself into one fantastic metaphor.  'second bloom,' i thought, is exactly what i am going through right now.  a change.  a transformation.  a methodical prune of my spent blossoms with aim to force my soul to rebloom and become something altogether beautiful and whole.  

i am at a delicate turning point in my life where i am able to see, as though estranged from my body, myself changing and reblooming right before my very eyes.  sometimes, life takes you for a ride and it is only after the fact that you realize you've changed.  but not this time.  i feel as though my life is smack dab in the middle of two chapters, and i am currently licking the tip of my finger to get a better grasp on the chapter i am eager to start reading.  it's all very exciting and refreshing, this rebloom of mine.  it includes a lot of letting go of past chapter comforts while simultaneously embracing new things, like faith and knitting and new friendships, to name just a few.  

i think we all have many second blooms throughout our life.  just when we think we have it all put together we desire something better and more meaningful for ourselves.  we crave more goodness in our lives and make way for it by getting rid of the superficial and trivial. and the only way to really cultivate meaning and beauty and truth is to take care of and nurture your heart, mind, and soul.  this is no easy task.  it is probably the hardest endeavor one will ever take on.  however, it is most definitely worth pursuing and will make oneself better for it.