The bulbs we bury

I planted 1000 bulbs recently. In heavy wet clay. It was cold, muddy work. All I had to show for some backbreaking hours was lumpy grass and grubby fingernails.? The first half an hour was quite fun - I was outside, it was a new project, nothing ached yet. But tedium wore on, as did my joints and blistered palms: the ground seemed to get harder the more I worked, and nothing much actually happened.?

Now, after that work, I wait. And I hope. The bulbs are doing their work, deep underground. I have to exercise patience until I see what will flower in the spring. I confess that patience is not a strength of mine.

Planting bulbs seems the definition of delayed gratification: effort without guarantee of reward.? Personal change can feel like this - whether it is mindset, careers or behaviours. Initial motivation turns to hard graft, repetition and consistency are boringly necessary, discomfort occurs and you put energy into the world, without the assurance of return.?

But spring will come, and so will Wordsworth’s hosts of flowers. But not without my muddy work. So in this waiting phase, I’m trying to reframe my bulb planting into that of tucking future promises under the dark duvet of the earth. A gift from my present self to my future. Not the frenzied unwrapping of a surprise from under the tree, but a more sustainable, quieter change that will appear after the long winter, when I most need it.?

What bulbs are you burying this winter?

What I’m reading

Bulbs have prompted me to return to a favourite from John O’Donahue For a New Beginning, and the ‘out-of-the-way places of the heart’.?

Much reading is inspired by my clients; it is like being in an endlessly expanding book group exchange, but without the wine or poor recommendations. I was recommended and have got so much from dipping into Creative Acts for Curious People from the d.school, Stanford. It is an anthology of exercises to apply creativity to real world problems, from The Girl in the Chair exercise, to Expert Eyes and What's in your Fridge; new lenses on old challenges. It shares its heart with 64 Million Artists , the social enterprise that I am privileged to work with. They both believe that everyone can be creative, and that can inspire leadership and challenge the status quo in radical new ways.?

If you fancy playing around with your own creativity, have a look at 64 Million’s January Challenge - daily creativity prompts for the whole of the month. A sure fire way to brighten up the January gloom.

What I’m listening to?

I loved the first of this year’s Reith lectures Our Democratic Future. With impending elections on both sides of the Atlantic, and some pretty hair raising electoral outcomes across the globe, it felt like an important - but entertaining - reminder of the ongoing worth of our state institutions, and what they might need to do to stay responsive to our rapidly changing society.?

The soundtrack to my last couple of months has been Sufjan Stevens new album Javelin. It is raw, intimate and beautiful, although sadly none of its song titles quite rival the brilliant ‘And I Shall Come to You Like a Stormtrooper in Drag Serving Imperial Realness’ of his previous album.

I’m ending early for the year this December and travelling with family. So this is my opportunity to wish colleagues, friends and clients well - hoping you get what you need from the festive season, and wishing you the best for 2024.

Melissa