Valley Mentality
Did you know that valleys provide year-round water and soil moisture? Inland valleys, specifically, provide farmers the opportunity to produce crops throughout the year, especially during excruciating drought.
Climates in the valley often differ from surrounding areas thus providing rich soils ideal for cultivating crops. From a settlement standpoint, it’s important to note that valley walls block winds and severe weather while also creating a natural barrier against intruders.
Okay, I’m clearly not here to educate you on landforms and agriculture so stick with me.
Somewhere along the way we have adopted the metaphoric valley to be a place of hardship, despair, and even death. As a society, we compare our successes and prosperity to the mountaintops and encourage one another to “push through the valley” when life seems grim.
Educating myself a little bit on the agricultural importance of the valley, I couldn’t help but notice the juxtaposition of the mountain/valley metaphor we throw around.
Personally, I have imagined my tough seasons in life to be me (staff in hand and a cloak pulled over my head) pushing through hurricane-force winds and rains in a dark, cold, desolate valley that I must escape in order to get back on top of the mountain.
Dramatic visual right?
I think it’s important to note that we have completely minimized and tarnished the value of the “valley” and how eager we have become to step over the land-bearing all of the fruit.
Perception is reality.
What if, all this time, we have been masking death over the land of life? What if there is actually no gain, no growth, and no glory without the valley? What if the valley is where all of the fruit grows?
I don’t know about you, but I’ve never gained much from the broad, easy pathway and I’ve always found redemption at the other end of adversity.
As humans, we like the idea of things being orderly and not chaotic. Obviously, this is not a bad thing, however, when the desire for security and safety becomes the dominant theme in our lives - we miss the mark.
Most of us like to sit back and wait “for all of the pieces to line up” before we make a move and we ultimately miss out on the opportunity to grow.
We all have incredible potential but most of us don’t want to try anything bold like wandering through the valley because we are afraid to fail. The easy choice is always to live within the confines of mediocrity, on top of the mountain, but complacency will always lead to inaction which will ultimately leave us fruitless.
What valley are you walking through this season? What valley do you see on the horizon that has you actively looking for an alternative route to reach the mountaintop?
I know I mention the last couple of years of my life often in these installments, but it’s because they have been paramount in the development of the woman, mother, sister, employee, and friend I am today.
All of the abuse, trauma, lies, resentments, betrayals, and lessons that were thrown my way by my adversaries have led to this very moment. (Thank you.) Every last painful second has ignited the passion within me to speak up and “say it with my chest”. My “yes” means yes and my “no” means no. I no longer sit back idly, in fear, allowing those things to disrupt my peace and change the narrative. I have chosen to advocate for other women and be an example for my children in hopes of ending sick, generational behaviors and cycles.
Without the valley, I’d have no fruit. Don’t let anyone put a mask of death over the land of the life in your story. The valley is where the good stuff happens.
I hope all of you beautiful people have a great weekend.