I've shared this story before; I hope longtime readers won't be bored.

My mom was wise beyond her times. My baby brother (now 50+) was a sweet-natured child, big blue eyes and curly reddish brown hair, topped his sweetie face. I remember the spring he was barely 3, each time he escaped the house he'd pick one of mom's flowers and bring it to her. Now that was okay except mom didn't want him to pick her flowers she wanted them to last as long as possible and that meant-don't pick them. She tried explaining without squelching his tender spirit and good intentions. It didn't work; in he came with a prize tulip.

She tried another tactic and I'll never forget it. She took him to the seed store (how many remember those?) and helped him pick out some nasturtium seed. The only way to promote future flowers is to pick the blooms. See where this is headed? She helped him plant the seed, water them and watched them each day as they grew. When the blooms began, Mike was instructed that he MUST pick them each day. "Breakfast done? Time to pick your flowers." That may have lasted a week, but no more tulips were picked either.

I think I picked them until they were finished; I've always loved flowers. We lived right on the edge of the woods. In the spring I'd sit in the middle of a patch of violets and pick until I had a fist-full. There were Marsh Roses, Bloodroots, Jack-in-the-pulpits, and Trilliums, so many different wildflowers.

One of my favorite spring flowers in addition to tulips is the sturdy old Iris. I was deadheading my many clumps of them just this morning. They look so much nicer with the spent flowers removed. It occurred to me that doing such a simple thing made the beginning of my day so much more peaceful.

I highly recommend that you try this morning exercise. Walk among your flowers or sit by the now popular pot garden you've planted. Contemplate your daily goals, meditate, breathe and mentally list your top 5 gratitude's, as you deadhead, stir the soil and weed. Devote just 10 minutes of your morning to this or a similar activity and I think you will share my enthusiasm.