“April showers bring May flowers, That is what they say.
But if all the showers turned to flowers, We’d have quite a colorful day! “
April is ushering in plenty of showers in the Hudson Valley of upstate New York. While I am someone who actually delights in the rain, everywhere I go I hear random comments about the gloomy weather.
It is easy to grumble about the rain, ignoring the miraculous process that it is part of and the beauty that results from it: the beauty that brings May flowers.
Just as flowers can’t bloom without the rain, we often can’t experience success without a bit of hard work. There is a period where we have to live with discomfort – or live outside our comfort zone – in order to enjoy the victory of our goals and dreams.
- To enjoy the victory of 5, 10, or 50 pounds or more lost, one must put in the hard work in the gym and in the kitchen.
- Singers, songwriters, and authors will work hard to produce a song or book that many will value, in order to enjoy the royalties earned for years to come.
- Network marketers will work hard for months or years in the beginning in order to build a team, leverage a network and receive a residual income so they can enjoy more time freedom in the future.
- A mother goes through 9 months of change in her body and emotions and then any number of hours of labor to produce the miracle of new life.
- To enjoy your dream home, many workers must toil and labor to design and build it.
- Gonzaga, South Carolina, North Carolina and Oregon are all currently enjoying being part of the NCAA Final Four 2017. These four teams put in a long season(s) of hard work to enjoy being part of the playoffs this weekend. Each team will dig even deeper and work even harder to become champions.
Just like flowers require rain, success and beauty come through hard work. Instead of focusing on (or grumbling about ) the rain, we can enjoy the journey. We can embrace the rain, the hard work, the discomfort while we keep our eye on the end result we are seeking. We can learn to dance, sing and rejoice in the rain. We can stay in gratitude every step of the way.
And when we see the flowers bloom in May, we can look back fondly on our April Showers.
