Patience

In the beginning there was nothing but a plain field. Then someone planted a small forest and waited. Waited the whole year. Nothing but the same parched plain field was all that could be seen month after month, after month . . . Another year passed by, yet once again, there was no sight of any seedling, let alone a tree. Then the third year went by without any hint of new vegetation. After the fourth year all hope was gone that something other than a lifeless dessert-like land would ever appear. By the fifth year all the hard work of planting and waiting was almost forgotten. But unseen and unknown, all the growth gradually and persistently was taking place underground.  Only when the solid foundation of roots was fully established, did the first seedlings appear above the ground. And then, just three months later, eighty feet tall bamboo trees suddenly dwarfed everything in sight. It took five years to grow the roots and only three months to grow the whole bamboo forest that matured with an unprecedented, almost miraculous speed. Before long, the forest brought the clouds and the rain, the rain brought a creek, and the creek brought the vast diversity of wildlife.  The abundance of a new lush forest generously welcomed new life, new sounds, new creativity, new friendships, new adventures, new connections and a new perception of patience.