Becoming The Right Thing

Are 'You' a gardener? Yes you are...!

A man wanted to make an investment. An idea struck him: "Why don't I plant a small mango sapling and enjoy the benefits when it grows into a big tree?" So he went to the market, bought a small sapling and took it home. To the pride of his family, he planted it in the center of his garden.

He read everything about raising a mango tree. He got up early every morning, for he was determined to supply the sapling with all the necessary nutrients. He watered it, he supplied it with manure, and he took good care of its leaves by removing those that withered. He made sure the sapling received ample care.

Many times he sat and admired the beauty of the growing tree while dreaming about the tasty mangoes that the tree would bear. His mind was always filled with the wish to taste the first fruit of the tree.

Years rolled by... now, he had a big tree… glorious… with its leaves shining and healthy, its bark healthy and hard. It was a big attraction because it decorated his whole garden.

Then one day he noticed a small bud, which in a couple of days bloomed into a beautiful flower. Now he could hardly wait for the fruit so he started to increase his supply of nutrients and care. Then one day the tree let out its first product - a small green fruit. The man was so happy.

He waited for a few more weeks till the fruit grew in size. The day came when he decided to taste the first fruit of the tree. He climbed the tree, plucked the fruit and then came his disappointment. The fruit that he plucked from the tree was not like what he expected. It was hard, big and round. He was baffled. He was sad.

Seeing this, his neighbours came and asked him what happened. He told them that the fruit from his tree was not what he wanted. When the neighbours heard this, they did not know whether to laugh or console him for what he planted years ago was a guava sapling.

This story teaches us one simple thing. We all already know it, from our early years. "If we want to raise mangoes then we have to plant mango saplings. There is no other alternative."

Similarly, how then can we expect to become what we want to become if we are not willing to sow the right seed?

How many times do we think that we can achieve what we want, even after dividing our focus and attention on diverse/multiple things?

How many times are we tempted to think that even after compromising our time on non-essential stuff, we can still manage to reach our goal?

1. If a girl wants to become a physician, she has to read and try to get through biology, otherwise how can she realize her dream?

2. If a boy wants to become a soccer player, he most certainly has to spend his time sweating on the ground (even when his friends are out, partying).

3. If a man wants to become a writer, there is no other way than to read and practice writing. What other way will do?

4. If a woman wants to become a painter, will having chats with her loved ones help? We know what should be done instead; taking up the brush and paint.

5. Does anyone want to change his attitude from negative to positive? He should be willing to sow the seeds of rigorous training of his mind.

This applies to every goal in life, be it big or small, personal or social. How can we expect mangoes if we are not planting mango saplings in the first place?

We can really become all that we want… truly all that we want. These are the words spoken by great people throughout the centuries. If we want to achieve what we want, then we have to seriously invest in the things that will lead us to that particular destination. It is wrong seeds, in the first place, that change the future fruit.

Our thoughts are the first seeds that we sow in any endeavour. The Bible also affirms this in the book of proverbs - "As a man thinks, so he becomes."

The only thing needed to become what we want, is the realization that we harvest what we sow; therefore sowing the right seed and investing our efforts in it would be the sensible thing to do…ONLY THE RIGHT SEED WILL WORK! Let us sow the right seeds into our daily lives.

Following our thoughts, the next key things are our words and actions. They too are seeds.

George Washington said, "Bad seed is a robbery of the worst kind: for your pocket-book not only suffers by it, but your preparations are lost and a season passes away unimproved."

If we plant a bad seed (action/word), we are the ones who are unfortunately the ones to reap it. We lose an opportunity… a season. Hence, let us decide to plant and water the correct seed, of which we want to enjoy the benefits, even when other seeds are enticing or distracting.

We all know what the right seed is for each of our ventures; it is just a matter of sowing them with diligence. It is simple - Let us sow what we want to reap and we are automatically on the right track, whatever the track might be.

By Sam Vijay Kumar