Thursday meditation
Sprout
Today is Day 13 of my writing challenge to myself: twenty to thirty minutes in the morning, about whatever my imagination lands on. This exercise gives me my own place to stand. I’m sharing my results here.
Today’s prompt is “sprout.”
This morning, I couldn’t get myself started on a prompt, or even land on a word. My husband provided “sprout.” A perfect word for this time of year, plus a word full of promise!
You’d think I’d first picture the new growth outside, crocuses and daffodils coming up as the first signs of spring. But even before that, “sprout” takes me to alfalfa.
As a kid, I loved alfalfa sprouts. Could never have enough of them on a salad: they were crisp, a little tangy, a little sweet. Somehow they tasted perfectly “green.” They were particularly delicious mixed with Italian dressing, my favorite. As an adult, I more or less forgot about them for a while, but then, during Covid quarantine, my husband bought a countertop sprout garden. (One of several kitchen gadgets we tried out during those months when home became the all-focus. I know we weren’t the only ones looking to add variety when life had folded in so dramatically on itself, with that constant undercurrent of fear and uncertainty.)
The sprout garden is a four-tier plastic tray with a top lid. You sprinkle each tier with seeds, stack them together, set them on your countertop, and water at least once a day. It’s amazing how fast the sprouts grow. You rotate the trays every day, switching the bottom one to the top. Pretty soon, you have four little forests of sprouts. It’s so satisfying, especially “harvesting” them and having a bowlful in the fridge. That countertop garden was one of our best kitchen experiments. For me, it was a delicious rediscovery.
It’s funny how “sprout” takes me so vividly back to that particular time, the spring of 2020. This past Friday was March 13, and six years ago, Friday March 13 was the last normal day many of us had before Covid lockdown began. I remember doing a grocery run that day; we knew it would be the last grocery run for a while, but I don’t know if anyone anticipated that it would be over a year before doing ordinary errands felt normal again, even safe. Grocery shopping was never my favorite thing, but it feels a little different now. I try to remember not to take everyday moments for granted.
What else about “sprout”?
Spring, of course. Our crocuses came up a couple of weeks ago, and so far, we’ve had one daffodil. It bloomed last week, on a day when we also had snow. March has been in like a lion so far, but we’ve had a few tastes of that much gentler spring weather, and even a couple of days that have hinted at summer. Every day, I look for new green outside. It’s not here quite yet: the trees are bare, the grass still faded. Soon, though. Soon we’ll have the new green mist on the branches and the new grass that’s so vivid you can’t take your eyes off it. It has felt like a very long winter. We can almost taste the spring, and I can’t wait to drink it in.
“Sprout” is new ideas, too. This winter has felt very foggy to me; sometimes it’s almost as if I got sick sometime in December (which I didn’t) and haven’t gotten over it yet. My energy has felt low, and though I can keep going with the stuff that needs to be done, sometimes it’s a pretty tough slog. It’s been a challenge to think clearly. But with the change of seasons coming, I feel moments of clarity coming in, where the fog breaks up and I get a glimpse of something new and promising. A sense of firm ground underfoot, ideas to reach for, creative projects to try. It’s hopeful.
This has turned into a long reflection. What does “sprout” mean for you?
If you’d like, please use the prompt for your own creativity, and feel free to share thoughts/responses in the comments. I’d love to read them.
About A Place to Stand:
I started this column in hopes of creating a bit of space and sharing light in challenging times. Drawing on my own experience as a trauma survivor, I offer meditative exercises using creative writing and music, my two professional/artistic pursuits. I also share some of my own writing and thoughts on the creative process. You can find out more about me and my work at my website.
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