this year it’s a weed

Jul 9, 2011

This Year It’s a Weed—Pull It

BY MONT POULSEN

When I was growing up in Lehi, Utah, USA, my family had a garden large enough that we rotated the corn and potatoes every year. One day my father told me to weed the corn while he weeded the potatoes. As I worked my way down a row of six-inch-high (15 cm) corn, I found a solitary potato plant growing larger and more beautiful than any of the potato plants on Dad’s side of the garden. I called to him and asked, “What should I do with this?”
Dad barely looked up. “Pull it.”

Believing he hadn’t realized I was pointing to a potato plant, I objected, “But Dad, it isn’t a weed. It’s a potato.” Again, without looking up, he said, “Not this year. This year it’s a weed. Pull it.” So I did.

Since then I have often pondered the wisdom of my father’s words. I have come to realize that obedience is not just making a right choice, but making a right choice in the right season. When I consider all the things Heavenly Father would have me do in this life, doing them at the right time seems as critical as doing them at all.

I was reading in the Ensign (my church’s monthly magazine) today and read this article and can’t get it out of my mind. What are the weeds in my life right now? What wonderful things am I doing that need pulled out for this season? Where does my “growing” energy need to go?

Weighty matters…I’ll share more thoughts when I decide just what is a weed and what is not.