Sprout

A Change of Mind

I froze. It was all my fault. I could have dug them up and brought them inside. I could have done that. But NO, what did I do? Nothing. Nothing that saved these innocent strawberry plants. Now they were dead. And it was too late.
Then I began to feel an idea blossoming in my mind. A realization.
There was always spring to look forward to.
Spring. New growth...Life! New life in spring! Spring!
Spring would come, and the strawberries would bloom. There was always another chance.
I raced home and immediately darted to the computer. Wiggling my stiff fingers, I began to type:

There is always new life to replace the dead--always another chance to sprout, to bloom. No matter how much suffering you endure, spring will come again, sooner or later, and everything will blossom. That is called hope.

Hope. What a powerful word. It didn't apply to just strawberries, but to everything. In bad times, you hoped that things would be better. Hope. It was hope that carried one through the peril and suffering of winter, and on to a lush, sprouting, blooming spring.
I as I thought about these things, something inside me changed. I felt inspired. Exhilerated. I had never thought about it this way. Nothing lasts forever. There are good times and bad times. There was hope when it was bad, and eventually it would lead to good. From barren winter to lively spring. Amazing how strawberries could make me think about this.

Just the thing I could write a story about.