Awaken to the Miracle of Life Itself

“Every moment and every event of every man's life on earth plants something in his soul.” --Thomas Merton

As a former kindergarten teacher, I taught lessons on plants and seeds many times.  I always asked what it takes for a plant to grow and got the usual answers; soil, sunlight and water.  I never appreciated something very important though.  We could put a rock in fertile soil, give it adequate water and sunlight and it would never grow.  The most important thing needed for a plant to grow is the life inside the seed itself.  It is life that makes the plant grow.  The soil, sunlight and water are simply the conditions that allow life to emerge from its potential and express itself.  I know that we all know this, but for some reason I was struck by this simple fact in a way that I never was before recently. 
A quote from the Talmud says, Every Blade Of Grass Has An Angel That Bends Over It And Whispers..."Grow, Grow"  The first few times I heard that quote, I dismissed it as odd.  I couldn’t imagine an angel for every blade of grass and knew that it wasn’t true.  I didn’t really get it.  Recently, I heard that quote again and was struck by it.  As soon as I heard it this time, I realized how much we take for granted the gift of life.  Each seed contains life, a gift from the universe to be in expression in this physical world for a very short amount of time.  The drive that pushes the grass to grow isn’t different from what is in each and every one of us.
We are not awakened in the morning by our alarm clock.  We are awakened by life.  Each day life gives us the opportunity to express itself through us in the unique way that only we can bring forth.  It is an amazing miracle that we often take for granted.   Life is cheering us on.  When we hold a reverence for life, we are grateful for the gift of being alive in this very moment.  Take a breath and feel the aliveness within you.  You are life and life is a miracle.