We have all heard the phase, “slow and steady wins the race” and we are all familiar with the Aesop Fable of the “Tortoise and the Hare.” The key element here is that a deliberate ongoing effort may help one reach a goal…no matter what it is. If this is true, what prevents us from reaching goals? Why is it so difficult to keep doing something over-and-over again until the goal is reached? Why are we sometimes compelled to eat the entire pie (metaphor) as opposed to easing it down, slice by slice? My mom always said, “You can’t eat an elephant!” When we approach things as just described, often we fail. If we have a goal and take small steps consistently toward that goal, we will reach it. Beauty is in the little things. Those little things we do or small steps we take, may lead to miracles!

Have you heard of the Daffodil Principle? We all know the amazing beauty of a daffodil. We may also know that it comes in various hues. Could you imagine a field of a variety of multi-colored daffodils? Jaroldeen Edwards tells the story of how a startling image changed her life. Her daughter had wanted her mom, Jaroldeen, to view a daffodil garden. Jaroldeen decided it was too far and kept coming up with countless excuses as to why she could not take the time to visit the garden. Her daughter was able to finagle her mom to make the trip.

  

Jaroldeen writes: “We turned a corner of the path, and I looked up and gasped.  Before me lay the most glorious sight, unexpectedly and completely splendid. It looked as though someone had taken a great vat of gold and poured it down over the mountain peak and slopes where it had run into every crevice and over every rise. The flowers were planted in majestic, swirling patterns, great ribbons and swaths of deep orange, white, lemon yellow, salmon pink, saffron and butter yellow. There were five acres of flowers….On the land, was a house with a poster that read: ‘Answers to the Questions I Know You are Asking’. The first answer was: ’50,000 bulbs.’ The second answer was: ‘One at a time by one woman, two hands, two feet and a very little brain.’ The third answer was: ‘Began in 1958’.” The author finishes the story with the thoughts: “What might have I accomplished if I had a thought of a wonderful goal thirty-five years ago and had worked away at it ‘one bulb at a time’ through all those years? Just think about what I might have been able to achieve!”…”Start tomorrow” was her daughter’s reply.

Jaroldeen, the author, pinned this as the Daffodil Principle. It simply means that we should make a commitment to stick with a goal and do it diligently in little steps, every single day. Robert Collier once said, “Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out”.

Pondering over the simple nature of this principle one cannot help but begin to think of those who reach apparently unimaginable goals or accomplishments. An athlete keeps practicing until one day a world record is broken. A person is told they won’t gain strength but they become defiant and decide to work on it everyday, no matter what, and eventually there is a turnaround or a positive outcome.

  

We turn to the beautiful little daffodil in Spring. What are the chances this delicate flower would be able to strain its way through hard solid ground and packed snow to emerge triumphant as its green leaves say, “hello” to the world? Little by little, it is able to find its way to the sunshine. We can do that too. We do it every single day we reach out to help one of our older adults. Little by little we are making a difference in someone’s life! Let’s continue to network and learn from each other. Let’s learn how we can, little by little, accomplish goals or miracles.

 

Please take the time to attend this year’s Spring Soiree on May 25th where you’ll be able to share your stories and be encouraged by what others are doing in this marvelous field of helping our older adults. Day-by-day, you are part of building miracles!