Say what?

I am currently learning in one of my Landscaping classes how to read, write and speak in Botanese (not sure if that's a real term). For example, can you say the name Clytostoma callistegioides or Pathenocissus tricuspidata? When I got into this landscaping stuff I had no idea I would be learning a 4th language. I just love plants. But why is it that with everything in life, you can't just do something you like, and then sit back and enjoy it? There always has to be a test, a challenge. Who knew that planting beautiful flowers and trees required that I learn Latin and memorize plant botanical names? Why can't I just go to the darn nursery and say, "Gimme 10 flats of those pretty purple thingies and a dozen of those yellow scented shrubs. And while you're at it, can you just put them in the ground over in that corner, please?" And who knew that being a Landscape Designer meant I would need to learn the detailed process behind laying concrete, installing masonry, and planning complex irrigation systems?

I have always managed to find my way down the difficult path. When I was in college, I started off in engineering school. After suffering through advanced calculus, P-Chem, and every level of Physics, I decided, engineering was not in my future. Then I decided to be poli-sci/pre-med. Since I had spent almost half my college years in engineering school, I had to hurriedly get through all the requirements for my new major, plus make sure I got in all the necessary classes for med-school admissions. Needless to say, my GPA was not stellar, especially after engineering school and overloading myself with a whole slew of new requirements to complete in 2 years. After college, I took the MCAT twice (excuse my French, but it's a bitch). In the meantime, I decided to study public health in order to get myself together to apply to med schools and to gain some background knowledge on the community side of health delivery. Sadly, I have abandoned all of this as well. No engineering. No political science. No med school. No public health. But if you ever need a public policy health engineering landscape consultant, you know who to call.

So, here I sit, about to embark on the prime years of my life and still scratching the surface of what it is my calling in life is. I've begun to realize that nothing in life comes easy. And in the end, I fear this is all I will learn in this life. It reminds me of Ecclesiastes. Life at times feels so futile. But glancing back, I don't regret having traversed such a windy and sometimes bleak road. It has brought me opportunities I would have never imagined, introduced me to people and places I never knew, delivered me from one coast to the other and just about every state in between, and opened my eyes to varying points of view. And that's what life is: it's a gift. Sometimes it's the perfect gift that you've been waiting for all year and sometimes it's the thing you take to the church Christmas white elephant gift exchange that keeps finding its way home to you.