Photo of the Week: Green leaves. I took this photo on a frozen December morning. It had been below freezing for several days and I was fascinated by the fact that this plant still had green leaves. Someone told me that it may be because the leaves on the ground kept the roots warm.

Whether that is true or not, it made me think. It is a wonderful metaphor! The dry, dead leaves that have fallen to the ground, protect the roots from freezing and damaging the above-ground leaves of a plant so it can continue to produce and clean the air. Often, “roots” metaphorically means the foundations of our lives–the core of who we are. Dry, dead leaves are often considered to be waste.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “…the whole of nature is a metaphor of the human mind.” So, I would say that a lesson of the green leaves is that, if we value the “waste” experiences–the mistakes, the failures of our lives–as learning experiences, these experiences can be used to protect and nourish the core of who we are. Then, we can continue to function and contribute even in the harsh climates of life.

I think part of the lesson lies in the way a person uses the dead leaves of life. Sometimes, the dead leaves smother plants when the weight of the leaves snuffs out the oxygen the plant needs. What can a person do when the weight is too much? Some people rake leaves to protect grass. To me, this means allowing others to help when you are feeling crushed by life. Other times, plants will, in a way, “hibernate” until the crushing leaves dry up and blow away. This shows that there are times to wait, to care for the self quietly until the circumstances shift.

Maybe, when feeling stuck, maybe a good thing to do is to look to nature. How does nature heal itself? After all, we are nature, too. What do you think? What truth have you found in nature?