An Act of Kindness

Sometimes you never know what a small act of kindness will do or how long it will last.  There is a beautiful bamboo plant that a friend gave to me a few years ago.....for a couple of years it sat on the mantel, but a few months ago I felt the need for a green plant on my desk.  It now sits in front of the lace curtain on my window, almost as tall as window itself.   I love this plant, it represents many things......friendship, natural beauty, strength, love and caring.

I know when my friend gave me the plant  he probably didn't think about the act of kindness he was doing.  Little did he know how much I loved plants, and how much I cling to them......after all,
I still have a flourishing plant that my mom's mother gave to her in 1964, I have trees in my house that my mom planted.......they touch the peak of our 14 foot ceilings.

Another friend told me several years ago, that all of my plants would be my legacy and I had better think long and hard about who would take them and care for them when I passed on.  That statement made me panic, who would want to care for those old plants?  What would happen to them?

And , who would love them as I do?

I remember my grandmother Mamie would never thank someone who gave her a plant as a gift, she thought it was bad luck, that the plant would die.  I have one of her plants too, a bleeding heart that fills our deck with its beauty every summer.

If you ever think that the gift of a plant might not be that special, don't even go there.......you never know how long it will be in that person's life, you'll never know how much joy it will bring.  Giving a plant is giving trust, believing that the recipient will love and care for it.......it is also a gift of beauty.
A plant is no small act of kindness......at least not for me.


This bamboo plant is now 4x the size in the picture.