Abundant Fruit from the Seeds We Planted

“The fruits from the seeds I plant today will be eaten by my granddaughters.” -Kalah Hill

I have always had a keen awareness of my responsibility to live in such a way that my life will be a blessing to those who come after me, a sense of purpose that I am here to help birth and build a different kind of world. I don’t know where this unshakable belief originated, but it was certainly nurtured in me by my daddy, who shared wisdom with me passed down to him from his Cherokee grandmother.

I never met her; she passed long before I was born. Nor did I get to meet my daddy’s parents, for I was part of his second family. My sister was an unexpected midlife surprise that resulted in him marrying my mother and getting one-year-old me as part of the deal. He always loved me as his own, and I can’t imagine who I’d be without him. 

Being reared by a man old enough to be my granddad meant I got the benefit of a more mature perspective. Life was savored. Service to others was a priority. And, I knew I’d lose him sooner rather than later. I tried to soak up all the lessons he could teach me, nurturing the seeds he planted in my life and the lives of others, watching as his grandchildren and others he did not live to see grow into adulthood benefit from his life, labor, and love. Emulating him, I’ve tried to live my own life in such a way that the decisions I make today result in a healthy world seven generations into the future.

Meeting my very first grandchild, Ava Kate, has brought me another layer of perception and awareness. It’s not just metaphorical grandsons and granddaughters for whom I am fighting to birth and build a better world, not just other people’s grandsons and granddaughters, it’s for her. My life, my labor, my love are now, have always been, and will continue to be for Ava, whose very name means “life” itself. It’s a sacred responsibility I wholeheartedly accept.

Holy one, give us eyes to see, ears to hear, wisdom to know, and strength to live in such a way that our communal grandchildren have a just, equitable healthy world, thriving relationships, and abundant fruits from the seeds we have planted. Amen.

Roxanne is a new grandmother, seasoned mom/stepmom, happy wife, devoted friend, anxious activist, avid learner, and mystical seeker who regularly finds herself captivated by experiences of wonder and is currently exploring rest as a form of political resistance.