I moved along the garden row, pulling weeds as I did so. I noticed one marigold plant in the row along the edge of the garden that was not aligned with the others. Every time I saw it, it bugged me, but with it being hot and the plant contentedly blooming where it was, I decided against moving it.
The children enjoyed helping me plant the garden this spring, now together we were pulling weeds. I looked at that marigold again, six inches out of alignment, then something struck me. Why, isn’t that marigold plant like me? Set apart — different from the rest. That flower plant had no choice where its seed had fallen, neither did I choose to do life as a widow or single parent. I knew in my heart that life is not simple for anyone, yet I looked at the row of flowers stretching out on either side of it; they were in a straight row — is that what normal life looks like?
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