Keep Watering Your Bamboo Tree

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Keep Watering Your Bamboo Tree

 Eric Aronson 

In the Far East, there is a tree called the Chinese bamboo tree. This remarkable tree is different from most trees in that it doesn't grow in the usual fashion. While most trees grow steadily over a period of years, the Chinese bamboo tree doesn't break through the ground for the first four years.

Then, in the fifth year, an amazing thing happens - the tree begins to grow at an astonishing rate. In fact, in a period of just five weeks, a Chinese bamboo tree can grow to a height of 90 feet. It's almost as if you can actually see the tree growing before your very eyes.

Well, I'm convinced that life often works in a similar way. You can work for weeks, months and  years on your dream with no visible signs of progress and then, all of the sudden, things take off. Your business becomes profitable beyond your wildest dreams. Your marriage becomes more vibrant and passionate than you ever thought it could be. Your contribution to your church, social organization and community becomes more significant than you have ever imagined.

Yet, all of this requires one thing - faith. The growers of the Chinese bamboo tree have faith that if they keep watering and fertilizing the ground, the tree will break through. Well, you must have the same kind of faith in your bamboo tree, whether it is to run a successful business, win a Pulitzer Prize, raise well-adjusted children, or other important endeavors and business you have been nurturing..

You must have faith that if you keep making the calls, honing your craft, reading to your kids, reaching out to your client base, that you too will see rapid growth in the future.

This is the hard part for most of us. We get so excited about the idea that's firmly planted inside of us that we simply can't wait for it to blossom. Therefore, within days or weeks of the initial planting, we can become discouraged and begin to second guess ourselves or outside influence can slow or impair our dream.

Sometimes, in our doubt, we dig up our seed and plant it elsewhere, in hopes that it will quickly rise in more fertile ground. We see this very often in people who change jobs every year or so. We also see it in people who change churches, organizations and even spouses in the pursuit of greener pastures. More often than not, these people are greatly disappointed when their tree doesn't grow any faster in the new location.

Other times, people will water the ground for a time but then, quickly become discouraged. They may even start to wonder if it's worth all of the effort. This is particularly true when they see their neighbors having success with other trees. They start to think, "What am I doing trying to grow a "bamboo" tree? If I had planted a lemon tree, I'd have a few lemons by now." These are the kind of people who return to their old jobs and their old ways. They walk away or abandon their bamboo dream in exchange for a more common "sure thing."

Sadly, what many people fail to realize is that pursuing your dream will be a "sure thing" if you never give up. So long as you keep watering and cultivating your dream, it will come to fruition. It may take weeks, months, years or even much of a lifetime, but eventually, the roots will take hold and your tree will grow. And when it does, it will grow in remarkable ways.

We've seen this happen so many times. Henry Ford had to water his bamboo tree through five business failures before he finally succeeded with the Ford Motor Company.

Richard Hooker had to water his bamboo tree for seven years and through 21 rejections by publishers until his humorous war novel, M*A*S*H became a runaway bestseller, spawning a movie and one of the longest-running television series of all-time.

Another great bamboo grower was the legendary jockey Eddie Arcaro. Arcaro lost his first 250 races as a jockey before going on to win 17 Triple Crown races and 554 stakes races for total purse earnings of more than $30 million. 

 Remember, we all have a bamboo tree inside of us just waiting to break through.  Keep watering and believing and you too can be flying high before you know it.