In his book Awakening, Mark-Paul writes that the simple rose is as open as it can be at each stage of its slow blossoming. The same is true of our lives; at each stage of our unfolding, we are as stretched as we can be because the human heart is quite slow to blossom and is only seen as lacking when compared to the perfect lover, father, mother, and Griever. It's helpful to think of ourselves as flowers because if a flower pushed itself open quicker, which it can't, it would rip, however we as humans can and frequently do. When we're mourning, we often think we have to move faster, and we tear in areas no one can see. So, when we force ourselves to unfold faster or more fully than is natural, we obstruct ourselves since nature takes its time, and the majority of our troubles will arise from our impatient nature as grievers. We see that in our community, and we realize that perhaps the most difficult thing to do is to be patient with ourselves because in the flower industry, roses that do not open and will not open are referred to as bullets. So the question for you the grieving is, are you going to allow yourself to open and unfold in your own space and time? So you do not tear or are you going to remain stuck in grief as a bullet?
