Collecting Peace; A Seed

Because sometimes I need practical steps that ease anxiety or help me experience peace, today I am beginning a series called Collecting Peace.

Like the way my 3 year old collects acorns and leaves from the ground and brings them to me. It’s nice, that tangible feeling of holding some small item in my hand.

What comes next for Oliver is the sorting and the lining up, like when he lines up his cars.

That is my vision is for this series- focusing on a different small object each week.  One that reminds me of encouraging truth or that helps me fight despair & anxiety in a practical way.

So today I will begin with the pomegranate seed.

Did you know “garnet” comes from the Latin word “Garanatus,” meaning “seed-like”? It is in connection to a pomegranate, because garnets look like bright red seeds that can be found in the fruit.

Garnet is also the birthstone for the month of January, which seems fitting since January is the beginning of the year, like the seed represents the beginning of growth.

“See, the former things have taken place,

and new things I declare;

before they spring into being

I announce them to you.” Isaiah 42:9

I keep coming across different “seed” analogies in blogs posts, on podcasts, and in books.

I pay attention when synchronization like this occur.

“Though it is not what it will be, a seed has all it needs even while carrying a hopeful vision for transformation in the future.

I’m learning to embrace the small, hidden, slow-growing part of my soul and to practice the spiritual discipline of knowing I have everything I need.” -Emily Freeman

During the Winter months when green growth is not obvious, when brittle branches brush against grey skies there still remains the truth of the seed. A reminder that breakthroughs can happen. Breaking-out of a shell or breaking through the soil above ground.

My close friend Molly just gave birth to her son Evan last week. During those nine month of pregnancy there was  definitely discomfort for her. All the while during those 9 months we were in the process of renovating our home. Also an uncomfortable trying process!

And so here we are near breakthrough or in Molly’s case already there. She is now at home cuddling her baby boy, and our home is so very close to being completed. And together we celebrate the newness.

But during the times of waiting and persevering the idea of the seed gave my soul peace. A peace to trust even in slow or difficult growth. It reminded me to value the small beginnings and small steps forward.

The seed gives us reason to hope and not despair.

Practical Steps to Remember the Truth of the Seed

1. Draw or paint pictures of seeds. Hang it somewhere as a reminder.
2. Plant a seed in a flower pot and find a window to set it by.
3. Practice lettering or calligraphy with the phrase by Emily Freeman: “Though it is not what it will be, a seed has all it needs even while carrying a hopeful vision for transformation in the future. ” -Emily Freeman
4. Don’t give up on a project you feel called to; take the next right step, while also remembering that sometimes waiting and listening is apart of the process.