Follow The Sun

I am currently growing a sunflower plant, which sprouted from seed. The theory as to why it's called a sunflower plant is because the plant supposedly follows the sun. I have the photos to prove that this theory is true. When the sun raises in the east, the plant would bend toward the east. When the sun is highest in the sky at noon time, the plant points straight up. When the sun starts setting in the west, the plant points in that direction.

Also, it doesn't matter if it's cloudy or sunny. The plant knows where the sun is and would follow it.

But the sunflower isn't the only plant that does this, though this plant's movements are more apparent than other plants. Of all the plants that I've grown, I've noticed they all have a common method: they strive to grow up toward the sun's highest point (also known as the zenith). This means that in general, all plants try to grow straight up as if trying to reach the sun. So, if a plant falls over (such as when the ground gets too soggy), it would eventually curve upward as if trying to reach for the sun.

When you plant a seed, it doesn't even matter how you do it, because the young sprout would find its way toward the sun. That is why you don't find plants that sprout deeper in the dirt (but there are a few exceptions). Since the sun is the life-giving force of all plants, it would make sense that plants would strive to grow in the direction where they could get the most benefits from the sun. 

Man, plants are amazing creations!

See, plants know where they are going in life. Their aim is to reach for the sun, to follow the sun, to seek only the sun. No matter what the circumstances are, plants must only seek what gives them life: the sun.

So, what are you reaching for? See, we humans reach for everything and not really knowing what we're trying to find. We could be like a sunflower that points west when the sun is in the east. We could be like a plant that falls down and stays down instead of curving up toward the sun. We don't know where we're going in life. We just do whatever feels right, not knowing if we're following a direction that will give us purpose in life.

Think about two children. One wants to be a doctor when she grows up. She reads all the medical textbooks, studies the human body, goes to college to major in biology, and then gets accepted to medical school. She goes for her residency, passes it, and becomes an independent, fully licensed and board-certified doctor. She knew where she was going in life and she made all the necessary arrangements in her life so she could be a doctor.

Then you have the other child, who doesn't know what he wants to do. He gets involved in everything, but nothing seems to hold his interest for long. He does poorly in school, but manages to get accepted in a college. But once in college, he changes his major 10 times and finally graduates with a degree in English, but he doesn't know what to do with that degree. He applies for all kinds of jobs and gets hired at none. He finds himself living at home with his parents, being discouraged and playing video games until he could "find himself." Eventually, he gets a job working at a dollar store, applying for welfare, and making a bunch of wrong decisions that gets him no closer to...well...nowhere.

The difference with these two is that one knew where her sun was. The other didn't know where his sun was. One picked a goal and stuck with it until completion. The other had no goal to stick with. One had a vision while the other did not. One was focused on one thing, while the other had no focus on anything. One lived with purpose while the other lived by default.

Which of these represents you more? Do you know where your sun is? If you do, are you following that sun or are you ignoring it?

Getting ahead in life could be a simple matter of knowing where you're going and staying on that road no matter what. When you have no life focus and just simply sail wherever the wind blows, then you could be sitting at home depressed and wondering what the meaning of life is for you. 

While I don't wish to re-live my life all over to make better choices, if I had the option of making some changes, I would pick ONE thing to focus on and go only for that one thing. Yes, I would have other things to fall back on, but my focus won't be on what to fall back on. One of our mistakes is focusing on our fall-backs, paying too much attention to all the options around us. Instead of following the sun, we follow the many stars in the sky. Our vision is all over the place instead of focusing on the ONE star that is in the sky: our sun.

Here is another thing about the sun: it's bright and obvious. You can't miss it. Your sun is also bright and obvious. Maybe you just don't want to follow it, and if you refuse to follow that sun, then nothing good would be in your future. It's like a girl who gets a full scholarship to college at a university that's just down the block from her home, but she refused to go there. Instead, she decides to go to an exceedingly expensive private school out of state that she could only pay for with loans. Once she graduates from there, she'll have a ton of debt to pay back. Instead of following the sun, she looked to a distant star that barely makes any contributions to our planet.

What is bright and obvious to you? Are you following it or ignoring it? That sun could be your life's calling, but it doesn't look attractive to you. Follow that sun. If it will give you meaning to your life, follow it. Don't look at everybody else's suns. You have your own sun to follow, the sun that will give you life. If you're tired of how life is going for you right now, then it's time to be like a sunflower and follow the sun.