Re: OT/ The daffodil principle

[Guest guest]

Cindy -

What a beautiful Principle and what a wonderful reminder of just what is

important in life --- to actually live!!!

Thank you for sharing.

Love, Patti

OT/ The daffodil principle

THE DAFFODIL PRINCIPLE

[Guest guest]

What a lovely principal and it means even more when you think that

here in Australia the Daffodil is the symbol of the Anti Cancer

Council and we celebrate Daffodil Day to raise money for Cancer

research etc.

Sharon

>

> THE DAFFODIL PRINCIPLE

>

> Several times my daughter had telephoned to say,

> " Mother, you must come see the daffodils before

> they are over. " I wanted to go, but it was a

> two-hour drive from Laguna to Lake Arrowhead.

> " I will come next Tuesday, " I promised, a little

> reluctantly, on her third call.

>

> Next Tuesday dawned cold and rainy. Still,I had

> promised, and so I drove there. When I finally

> walked into Carolyn's house and hugged and greeted my

> grandchildren, I said, " Forget the daffodils, Carolyn! The road is

> invisible in the clouds and fog, and there is nothing in the world

> except

> you and these children that I want to see bad enough to drive

another

> inch! "

>

> My daughter smiled calmly and said, " We drive in

> this all the time, Mother. " " How far will we have to drive? "

> " Just a

> few

> blocks, " Carolyn said. " I'll drive. I'm used to this. It's all

> right,

> Mother, I promise. You will never forgive yourself if you miss this

> experience. "

>

> After about twenty minutes, we turned onto a small gravel road and

I saw

>

> a small church. On the far side of the church, I saw a hand

lettered

> sign that read, " Daffodil Garden. " We got out of the car and each

took

> a

>

> child's hand, and I followed Carolyn down the path.

>

> Then, we turned a corner of the path, and I looked up and gasped.

> Before

> me lay the most glorious sight. It looked as though someone had

taken a

>

> great vat of gold and poured it down over the mountain peak and

slopes.

>

> The flowers were planted in majestic, swirling patterns -

> great ribbons and swaths of deep orange, white,

> lemon yellow, salmon pink, saffron, and butter yellow.

> Each different-colored variety was planted as a group so

> that it swirled and flowed like its own river with its own unique

hue.

>

> There were five acres of flowers. " But who has done this? " I asked

> Carolyn. " It's just one woman, " Carolyn answered. " She lives on

> the

> property. That's her home. " Carolyn pointed to a well kept A-frame

> house

> that looked small and modest in the midst of all that glory. We

walked

> up

> to the house. On the patio, we saw a poster. " Answers to the

questions

> I

> Know You Are Asking " was the headline. The first answer was a

simple

> one.

> " 50,000 bulbs, " it read. The second answer was, " One at a

> time, by

> one

> woman. Two hands, two feet, and very little brain. " The third

answer

> was,

> " Began in 1958. "

>

> There it was, The Daffodil Principle. For me, that moment was a

> life-changing experience. I thought of this woman, whom I had never

met,

>

> who, more than forty years before, had begun - one bulb at a time -

to

> bring her vision

> of beauty and joy to an obscure mountaintop. Still, just planting

one

> bulb at a time, year after year, had changed the world.

>

> This unknown woman had forever changed the world in

> which she lived. She had created something of indescribable

> magnificence, beauty, and inspiration. The principle her daffodil

> garden taught is one of

> the greatest lessons. Work toward our goals and desires one step at

a

> time - often just one baby-step at a time - and learning to love the

> doing; learning to use the accumulation of time. When we multiply

tiny

> pieces of time with small increments of daily effort, we too will

find

> we can accomplish magnificent things. We can change the world.

>

> " It makes me sad in a way, " I admitted to Carolyn.

> " What might I have accomplished if I had thought of it 'one bulb at

a

> time' through THE DAFFODIL PRINCIPLE all those years.

>

> My daughter summed up the message of the day in her usual direct

way.

> " Start tomorrow, " she said. It's so pointless to think of the lost

> hours

>

> of yesterdays. The way to make learning a lesson of celebration

instead

> of a

> cause for regret is to only ask, " How can I put this to use today? "

>

> So, stop waiting...

> Until your car or home is paid off

> Until you get a new car or home

> Until your new job comes along

> Until your kids leave the house

> Until you go back to school

> Until you finish school

> Until you lose 10 lbs.

> Until you gain 10 lbs.

> Until you get married

> Until you get a divorce

> Until you have kids

> Until you retire

> Until summer

> Until spring

> Until winter

> Until fall

> Until you die...

>

> There is no better time than right now to be happy.

> Happiness is a journey, not a destination.

>

>

>

>

>