By Leila Safieddine | Staff Writer
White, fair orchid
Tall, you are.
White, fair orchid
Nourished, you sprout.
White, fair orchid
Death comes for you.
Unseen, barren you become.
Seasons move you,
still you grow.
With grace and tender beauty,
you give.
Withered by winter
Your soil, longs for light.
Shy, impatient sun
awaits from you a kiss goodbye.
This is an ode to those who give with no bindings, love with tenderness of the heart, and extend kindness without restraint, yet tend to forget that they too, need to be watered.
Isn’t that too little? Don’t they need more water? Thought I.
It was September. A blissful September morning – not too summery-warm with just the right amount of early autumn breeze. The boiling Arabic coffee sang beguiling tunes as the bubbles grew louder and the aroma of the roast had made its way from my grandmother’s Southern, blacktiled kitchen through the veranda. Softy mumbling to Fairuz, she moved with such regal grace. As I mused on the spectacular sight of my grandmother tending her premature orchids, I found myself growing unnecessarily furious: Why is she watering the plants with very little water?
Even after learning much about caretaking plants and acquiring an affinity to the art of botany from my mother, who has always been so fond of nature, I still wonder how floral creatures, in all their efflorescent beauty, need only to be watered a few times a day and necessitate a minuscule amount of water, barely satisfying a thirsty hummingbird. What makes me wonder even more, is how we are often so eager to give and to water others, when all we need to do is give to ourselves.
Why are we always so pressed to water ourselves down and neglect the nectar of our flora and fauna?
It boggles me that some people, myself included, often shy away from living to their truest selves in the fear of taking away from other people’s shine. It certainly doesn’t have to be this way; we don’t have to shrink to make others less uncomfortable. The sun shines for everyone to nourish their roots. There is no limit to how many rays or moments of sheer light you are entitled to. And there is enough of it for all of us to bloom. All you must do is expose your soil and stems. For vulnerability will first reveal the parts of you that you have hidden the most but will inevitably give you the strength to embrace them wholeheartedly. And although the possibility of growing into a marvelous creature seems uncertain, remember that even fragile orchids need to sleep in the summer to flower in the spring.
White, fair orchid
Tall, you are.
White, fair orchid
Nourished, you sprout.
White, fair orchid
Death comes for you.
Unseen, barren you once were.
Morrow, life returns to you.
Once embraced by light,
untethered you become.