Reminder to myself

October 2014
This is a week for remembrance in our family, people we love who have left us too soon. Like my photos which are sometimes composites of different photos, today, I offer these small tidbits of writing, more for myself than you. They are my own trail of crumbs by which I am both lost and found.

August 2013
In a singular moment, a heavy wind causes the seed of the larrea to detach from the branch upon which it was created. The seed's fuzzy exterior allows it to be carried along by the wind so that it might land somewhere far away from its parent. There is a good reason for this that has less to do with genetic diversity than you might think. The larrea plant releases a natural herbicide in the ground beneath it to decrease competition from other plants for vital water and nutrients. Seed falling directly beneath the larrea would likely not survive and so floating or wind-borne seeds have a much better chance at survival.

But as a human, I often ascribe human characteristics where they least belong. I find a poignancy in this moment of separation even if it is in the best interest of the parent and the child, er, seed. Even though it is the most natural thing in the world to happen, letting go is one of the hardest things we humans ever learn to do. Whether it is letting go of (misbegotten) ideas, letting go of cherished dreams, letting go of our own seed, er, children or letting go of any of the people we love, it is, in fact, love that demands it (and selfishness that impedes it). Letting go is hard but in the end it must happen and it does happen, despite our foolish humanness.