About six months ago, I was gifted an orchid plant. It was beautiful, loaded with white blooms. I knew, though, that orchids can be hard to care for and somewhat persnickety. I put it on the ledge of my kitchen window facing east, not because I had discovered any special secrets about growing orchids but because that’s the only spot I had with some sun. I proceeded to handle it with sort of a benign neglect, watering it once a week and spritzing it with some orchid food that had good reviews on Amazon. If I could keep it alive, that would be success.

That’s been the routine for six months, and just the other day, I noticed that it had sprouted a new shoot. The new shoot has been growing for a while as it’s at least four inches long, but I didn’t see it until now. I had set my expectations pretty low (simple survival of the orchid) that the thought of it actually flourishing never occurred to me. I forgot to watch for something new.

How many times have I overlooked something good, something unexpected, because I doubted it could happen? Maybe I’ll try to hold a more hopeful stance, knowing what reality is but allowing space for something new to happen. My orchid hasn’t sprouted blooms yet (that won’t happen until late spring or summer, from what I’ve read), but I’ll be watching.