Sowing the right seeds: Out of a seed, life springs out. A good seed will eventually become a good tree while a bad seed will result in a not-so-good tree

Updated: Sunday December 1, 2013 MYT 9:01:11 AM

Sowing the right seeds

BY SOO EWE JIN

Out of a seed, life springs out. A good seed will eventually become a good tree while a bad seed will result in a not-so-good tree.

IT is possible these days to create a lush instant garden. Much like interior designers, the landscape experts will bring in plants of different species, and even trees, to make your dream garden a reality. But has anyone thought of planting seeds instead? A tiny acorn, we are told, eventually grows into a mighty oak tree 30 years down the line. We are now in the durian season and what makes it special is when our friends have their own orchards and are prepared to share their harvests with us.Durian trees take five to 10 years to bear fruit, and when they do, you can expect 20 to 50 fruits every year from each tree.

But I am told that the trees do not necessarily yield the best fruits in the first few seasons. It is a maturing process, so patience is of the essence.

So imagine how patient you have to be if you decide to begin from scratch, taking the seed from the best durian you have ever eaten, and making it germinate, grow into seedling, and eventually into a tree?

This is a good lesson to reflect on in the busyness of life.

The bottom line is that out of a seed, any seed, life springs out.

A good seed will eventually become a good tree while a bad seed will result in a not-so-good tree.

So when we come across the phrase, “we reap what we sow”, we can understand why farmers take great care to ensure that only the right seeds are planted.

From a figurative point of view, we are all farmers.

Many of us carry great responsibilities in life as parents, colleagues, business owners and citizens of this land.

Every day, we are sowing seeds, and we have to be careful what kind of seeds we are sowing.

For example, if we want to teach our children to practise the simple courtesies of life and to be law-abiding citizens, they must see us “sowing” such principles.

If they see us ranting out expletives even as we happily break the red light, it is unlikely that they will pay heed to any lecture we give them on the importance of being polite and obeying traffic rules.

If we take the shortcut to get them a “kopi-o” licence because they just cannot wait to drive, then there is no point getting all angry about the state of corruption in the country.

If we choose to sow the seeds of hatred, prejudice and all other negative things, somewhere down the line, someone will have to deal with the harvests.

In a recent article titled “Plant trees for your grandchildren”, Jonathan Lockwood Huie wrote, “Our legacy to future generations will grow from the acorns of our actions and inactions today in global affairs, energy, ecology, education, and wellness, as well as the personal values we demonstrate to those of this and future generations through our everyday behaviours and attitudes.”

It is a tough challenge in a world where everything needs to be done in a hurry. When speed is the essence, and where there is a need to show results in as short a time as possible, you can be sure that the seeds of shortcuts and compromise are not too far away.

And so we need to ask ourselves, what kind of seeds do we want to plant day by day?

> Soo Ewe Jin (ewejin@thestar.com.my) likes this quote by Robert Louis Stevenson, “Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant.”