Blooming Orchid

I bought a plant once.

It was an orchid, my favorite flower. When I bought the plant from the shop, it hadn’t blossomed yet. The plant was vulnerable and I knew it. I was keen on having it blossom so I took deep care of it. Watered the plant every day in the morning as it said on the leaflet. Added vitamins to the soil. Put the plant enough time in the sun. But just enough, not too long, not too little. It took time before the orchid blossomed but I was patient.

I was excited when the first signs of an orchid started blooming. The orchid was beautiful, healthy, colorful. It lighted up my living room.

But then life happened. I had no more time for my orchid. I took my orchid’s beauty into granted, after all, it was always going to be there sitting in my living room. I forgot it in the sun all day. I sometimes left it in the shade for too long. I stopped watering it on time and randomly watered it when I remembered. I wasn’t careful enough to notice that the orchid was getting weaker ever day.

One day, I came back from work and noticed that the once beautiful pink petals have all fallen off. I panicked. It hit me that my orchid might not be there anymore. I watered it and watered it some more. I put it out in the sun and started giving it more time as I did in the beginning.

But alas, it was too late. The orchid was there lifeless and nothing I did would bring it back. My living room was left dull without all the colors the orchid once brought. I painfully threw the plant away.

Relationships are just like that. They are constant work-in-progress. You can’t care at the beginning and then take the person into granted when they start to bloom for you. You can’t forget about them and expect them to give you everything in return. You can’t realize one day that you are losing their love and start giving them the attention they deserve.

Love is fragile, love is beautiful, but love is easily lost.

by Rand Gerges, PhD