For The Sake of Growth
Why do people live so close to volcanoes?
Because their soil grows the most beautiful flowers.
Maybe people forget what the volcanoes are capable of, with their consistent churning, just begging to erupt on all that is holy. Maybe people become so enamored of living in the presence of such immaculate potential for growth, that they forget the equally astonishing potential for destruction; they forget their own place among the possible casualties. Maybe, over time, they begin to trust that the volcano would never do anything to harm them.
From a young age, we are taught not to play with fire, but what do you do when the flames are your favorite color? What do you do when the heat thrown off from the lava of all that is erupting, is the one thing in this world that is capable of making you feel anything at all? What do you do when all that you love is toxic, all-consuming, and potentially fatal? What do you do when everything you thought you knew turns to ash? How do you keep yourself going when those ashes block out the sun?
Why do people so willingly build their entire lives around volcanoes?
Because sometimes, the potential for growth is found in the most dangerous places.
But are the burns worth sticking around and watching the flowers bloom? What if the blossoms are all the wrong colors?
What if we
can’t grow here?
© Gina Clingan 2021
