“Though I do not believe that a plant will spring up where no
seed has been, I have great faith in a seed. Convince me that you have a seed
there, and I am prepared to expect wonders.”
—
Henry David Thoreau
The process
of productivity is time-oriented. It involves many steps to the tangible output
worthy of consumption. It has no finality to it. It is a continuum. Remaining
productive requires a conscious decision matched with deliberate sets of
actions.
When it is
convenient and when it’s not. When we wobble and stumble it is necessary to
follow the structure. The structure is the secret. It cannot be missed neither
can it be swapped. One precedes the other then another then another.
As easy as
it is to pluck the beautiful rose. Some back and forth from cross pollination
to seeding to germination to survival of harsh weather conditions had happened
before the blossom. That beauty you see is not permanent. The rose is always
still in the works.
I learnt a
lot from the one green plant I have ever sown in my life. The Aloe Vera plant.
I visit my hairdresser on a sunny morning and met her discussing her attempt at
formulating hair products based on her years of experience in the industry. She
was lamenting about the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and
Control (NAFDAC) angle to production. It was going to take a very long and
tedious process plus financial investment to get the product approved. That of
course is story for another good day.
She had a
few ingredients lying around the salon floor. One of them were stalks of the
Aloe Vera plant. The greenery was the attraction. I commented that I wish I
could have that plant because I hear and read so much about all its benefits in
a lot of ways apart from hair care. In truth, I was particular about beauty
care. My acne-prone face was on my mind. She immediately offered me one of the
stalks. I was hesitant. I asked if it would grow. That question was borne out
of fear that having never planted anything in my life, what do I do with it. I
told myself ‘I better not waste it’. She immediately gave me assurance that it
is a rugged plant. It doesn’t wither off quickly and can survive without so
much attention. It been filled with water naturally; it nourishes itself for a
while. It has a natural sustainability component built-in. the Aloe Vera plant
can be planted in a bowl, she said. I took the plant with doubts in my mind.
I
immediately went to the grassland opposite my apartment to get black soil. That
portion of land was actually used as a maize farm by my neighbour. I poured
what my energy and plastic dustpan could dig into the small bowl. I dug a hole
and placed one of the stalks into it. I watered it. Looking at my effort,
placed by the window on the balcony of my one-room apartment I wasn’t sure it
would grow. I watered it every few evenings apart. In spite of my doubts, my
uncertainty, nature took its course. It grew. It wasn’t as green as I wanted
though. This was for no other reason apart from the fact that I didn’t water it
enough.
With those
cumulative efforts, some almost non-significant, I had my source of the
desirable Aloe Vera gel. I used it generously. The shocking thing is, at that
time I never really thought those actions put together was a process. I didn’t
realize it was a cycle. That the outcome was a result of a continuum of effort
which I had to keep going in spite of the result I have already.
Note that
even in my doubt, there was a glimmer of hope. I called it wish then. In my
mind, I said, I wish this thing will flourish. Heavy on doubt but light on
hope, I took the other stalk to my parents’ home. That plant is doing well too.
Today as I
write, I am glad to say it wasn’t a fruitless effort. It still isn’t. I have
more than one stalk of grown Aloe Vera plant in a medium sized washing bowl of
about 10 liters. I have more than enough for my thick black hair and for my
beauty experiments.
Do not
think this process of productivity just described is as simple as it is written
out. I, as human, forget to water the plant for a stretch of time. But the good
thing is I trace my step and get back to watering my plant – thank God for the
water composition in the plant itself – after a few days.
You see, as
I cast a long look back on that day after about 2 years, I see the lesson
therein. It took a decision, in my down time, to continue making efforts such
as putting pen to paper. You may want to strike that and read that as
sitting by my PC to write something. I consider any type of writing as putting
pen to paper because I am a pen pusher at heart and by training.
This is
exactly how productivity or call it success is. It will require inputs from
you. You may have to dig and get your hands dirty – I don’t mean that literally
only. You may have to forgo some fun things. You definitely have to do without
a few idle activities on your list.
But at the
end of the day I assure you it is worth all the trouble. Better put, it is
worth all the sweating, omissions, inconveniences and efforts.
Remember
the process is never finished.
Love, Soft
Steel.
“A garden requires patient labor and
attention. Plants do not grow merely to satisfy ambitions or to fulfill good
intentions. They thrive because someone expended effort on them”
— Liberty Hyde Bailey
“Watering everyday on a seed results in
fruitful faith.”
―
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