Life is a highway.

Long time ago, there was once an arid, dry land which was totally imposed with cracks due to drought. It was only a small compound made up of a few trees, with which the wind blows. Scattered around are pebbles of almost the same pale brown color.

That piece of dry land stayed lonely as it can be until a man, who came from a nearby land, saw the arid compound. He was problematic then because he just lost his job, something connected with agriculture. He felt really painful for the job was his passion and already his’ for 3 years. He sympathized with the solitude felt by the land and so he nurtured it using his green thumb. He tried to flourish the land by planting flowers of different kinds and colors. One of which are his favorite white roses, which symbolized purity and cleanliness. He watered the plants consistently. As he removed the weeds and pests that surrounded his plants, he usually talked with his roses. A few weeks later, the piece of dry, arid land soon turned into a scenic, promising and blooming garden.

It was a picturesque sight that everything you would see is green and spots of different colors. Everything that made up the garden was the fragrance of the flowers, the freshness of air and the greenness of the leaves. The pale brown-colored pebbles seemed to miraculously turn into lustrous, shiny stones. And the dry, cracked land was soon covered with green, moist grass. There were grasshoppers and crickets chirping around, frogs hopping from point to point, and butterflies and bees flying from one flower to another. Everything was close to perfection. This has brought happiness to the gardener. His passion did not actually die, but was continued with the presence of the garden. He was filled with joy and love, for his garden seemed to answer his efforts by blooming into perfection.

The garden, as I presume, is in whole gratitude for the gardener. Why? Because he has brought color and joy into the garden’s world. His simple thoughts, happy smiles, his joyous laughter, and his time and effort are appreciated a lot by the garden. His sleepless nights and restless days just to save the plants only showed his true and pure love for the garden. And I’m so much sure that the garden also loves the gardener so much. By blooming her pretty and fragrant flowers, she reveals her gratitude. The soft scent of her flowers seemingly says, “Thank you, my dear gardener.”

Both complement each other. The garden cannot stand and live by her own without the gardener. The same with the gardener who turned a dry, arid land, into a fruitful, blooming garden, becoming his partner for a lifetime.

Like the garden, we could flourish and be excellent in our own accord if we would be properly motivated. Each one of us is like the garden – gifted with latent potentials needed to be nurtured.

Like the gardener, we should not lose hope. Instead, we should use our talents in helping others to shine. Sometimes, we need to learn to liberate ourselves from the darkness where we dwell because doing so unconsciously give others the signal to do the same.

In short, each one needs inspiration in order to succeed.

Now, why is the garden blooming? A million thanks to the gardener.