The Lone Tulip

How nature connects me with the early signs of changes already happening within me

The lone tulip stands tall. A seed might have been dropped by a bird, or buried then lost by a squirrel. Whatever the story, this is the only tulip in this flower bed.

Purple is its colour. A good choice looking around at the other flowers I can see. Seems to be purple season.

It’s clear that this tulip didn’t choose this spot. Somehow it found itself here, and has been embraced by the underground network of the wood wide web. More than an exchange of nutrients between plants and fungi, this is a community. A community that has supported this tulip to grow tall, blossom and glow.

There is no sign of weakness in what could be seen as lonely. Only strength rooted in beauty.

I can hear bees buzzing in the flowers behind my bench. Wood pigeons searching the foliage.

There’s barely a breeze. The air is heavier today than yesterday. I’ve too many layers on, but it’s perfect for sitting still and writing.

Yesterday it was four seasons in one day, or perhaps even, every hour. I like those days best, but today the bird song is stunning. I imagine they are building nests, but with no urgency, just joyful calmness.

I often feel birds are old souls. There are those who stay all year round, and others who migrate. And if they migrate, they often follow an internal compass, or perhaps simply the insects also migrating.

Whatever the reason there are some birds led by instinct and others led by the intergenerational sharing of knowledge. Depends on what kind of bird they are born to be.

Although, there are some grey areas, as some migrating birds will also stay in one place all year round. It’s kind of intriguing. Perhaps they enjoy being the welcoming committee, being close to all year round home comforts, or simply because there is enough food and they can afford the luxury of staying put.

Soon, if not already; swifts, house martins, swallows, sand martins, yellow wagtails…the list goes on will be arriving in Edinburgh and the surrounding areas. What’s incredible is how small all these birds are, how far they travel, and how fast.

Swallows, for example, travel 6000 miles over 6 weeks from Southern Africa to our shores. Flying over the Sahara Desert, the Mediterranean Sea and Spain on their way to the UK. It’s amazing.

I don’t travel all that much, I’m a bit of a homebird. I love my day to day life. But I’m beginning to feel something stir. It’s that feeling I’ve had before when I’m around two years away from making a big change. It won’t be the same as changes I’ve made in the past though.

I’m so focussed on building my career that I’m neglecting the sustainable self part of the dream. I’m also too much in survival mode, which to be honest, is something that I’m comfortable with going through to build things up. However, I can’t be in this mindset long term.

I am becoming more and more aware that as I navigate building my career , I also need to factor in how I can protect space to have adventures just for fun…

…because some food is about feeding the soul and nothing else.