Tonight Blythe and I repotted one of her ivy plants, a task that was sorely needed. She and Dustun had two from his father's funeral several years ago. They had survived up till this point when they had been overwatered. They took them out of their pots and let them drain, but sadly, one had died and the other was in bad shape.
I am not an expert botanist (as I paid far too much attention to my orchids during quarantine - both could not be saved), but I agreed to help her resuscitate them as best as I was able. Mom had given her a bag of potting soil and a box of fertilizer spikes. Blythe dug out some old pots and we untangled and clipped the ivy, leaving them a little sad and naked in their new homes.
These ivy weren't rare or fancy. Their leaves weren't medicinal. They didn't grow gems. So why such care?
Like most of the women in my family, we assign emotions to objects. My sister associated these funeral plants with her husband's father who passed away six or seven years ago. She has fond memories of him and knows how much her husband loved him. These plants dying means an extension of him dies as well.
"Why bother?" you might say. "Who cares about these plants? They have nothing to do with her husband's father. They're just plants."
And yes, I agree - to a certain extent. They are just plants. But they are also the last physical representation of someone she cared about. And because of this, the plants deserve one more shot. This care that we sunk into them tonight begs the question: how far are you willing to go?
For now, the ivies will sit on a table near the sliding back doors. They will bask in the natural light with space to breathe. We will talk to them and encourage them to grow. We will water them once a week. Check on them daily. Perhaps they will bounce back, perhaps not, but it's the small actions, the ones that build up over time that make a huge difference. So, it's worth a shot to commit to breathing new life into something that gives you happiness, no matter how silly it seems to other people.
How far will you go for the people and things you care about?
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