When Nothing Is Really Something

Ihave been accused of hat beautyberry . look at the amazing varieties in Andra Windorf Nus ’s clause ( Beautyberry : Fall ’s Most Fantastic Shrub ) , one might be intemperately - pressed to oppose such an thought . as luck would have it , I do n’t hate this bush . I have , however , applied the same criticism that spring - blooming shrub such asdeutziaandforsythiaget : They have one season of interest , but for the residual of the year they are do - nothing plants . Beautyberry spends most of the year seemingly just sitting there before it — finally — sports its colored berries .

If there is one legal opinion I will defend , it is the belief that doing nothing is n’t always a bad matter . If a bee shows interest in you , remain calm until the dirt ball realizes you do n’t have pollen , and it will move along . If you start thrashing and thresh at it , the bee will defend itself . As a parent , I know that not every metre I hear a snuffle or “ It ache when I do this ” want a trip to the doctor . When my lawn turns brown in the summertime , I do n’t go against out the sprinkler . When cool temperature and rain return in fall , it will turn green again .

The truth is often that what is likely doing nothing is actually doing something ( although my wife never corrupt this contestation ) . If a guitar player is soloing , that does n’t mean the other musician are rent a cigaret break . They are playing the rhythm so that their bandmate can pamper his dreams of being the next Jimi Hendrix . And what might appear to be sleeping on the couch in front of a football game on TV is actually reload one ’s strong-arm energy to apply to the next chore on the list ( which might have to wait until next week , or whenever ) .

Beautyberry might appear to be doing nothing , but if you are a clever beholder , you will notice that it is officious stopping your oculus , keep your attention on what is in front of it , and perhaps allow for an beguiling glimpse of what is beyond . Before sporting its colorful berry , beautyberry is adding shape , texture , and semblance for other plants to play off of . In my garden , they spring hefty pear-shaped mounds that are the perfect background for plant life with a spiky or vertical substance abuse — which I have n’t yet save enough energy to plant .

So the next time you see a industrial plant that look like it is doing nothing , seek to mark what it is doing and take advantage of it . Likewise , if your married person is on the sofa alternatively of hanging up the icon in the dining room like you expect , he might just be recuperate from the clock time and effort it took to bump the tools for the job . How do you conduct with such a person ? Again , do nothing . He will do his thing finally .

— Steve Aitken , editor

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