GROWTH OVER TIME

The thing about subtle growth is that it can be both beautiful and meaningful, whether it is noticed by others or not. Picture each individual flower petal unfolding into bloom. Every aspect of it. every slight unfurl, every ridge. It's so delicate, yet so strong, as if every hidden change still carried its own proof of the story that had been shaping all along. 

Many might pass by a blooming flower each day, not noticing the growth that is taking place. And if this is true for something like a flower, which many regard as externally beautiful, then imagine what it's like on the inside, in our lives. Every moment we overcome a ridge of doubt, every movement through courage, every unfurling, every time we finally say the words we meant to say...these moments may go unnoticed or unspoken of by ourselves or others, but it doesn't make our subtle moments of growth any less valuable. It might take time to name it, but the shape of who you are becoming is forming through small shifts that build into something steady. The shape of who you are becoming reflects the steady work already happening underneath. This is the subtle bloom: even while you haven't been thinking about it, something in you has been settling into form in its own time.

To observe what this might look like in daily life, notice when you start saying or thinking things that point out a shift you didn’t plan:

"I didn’t expect myself to be able do that, but I did." "I just noticed I handled that differently than I used to." "I noticed I didn’t shrink myself down like I used to."

These kind of phrases may not fix or change everything, but they can perhaps serve as reminders that growth isn’t just year-over-year, linear, movement that always lines up with a predictable path. Instead, it’s subtle and layered, taking shape like flower stems supporting a slow, tender bloom that takes on its form little by little.

You’ve heard the word “growth” a million times. Let this be the season it softens into a version that reflects the parts of your life that change, rearrange, and shift in ways that aren’t always bold or linear. Welcome the subtle growth that gives your permission to move at a pace that makes sense for where you are. For subtle growth is always happening, even before others see it. It’s not always easy to observe and it’s not always obvious, but it can take on its form underneath your days, even before you fully realize it yourself. And perhaps one day, you will look back and see: all along, you were blooming.

More tomorrow…
Sincerely,  
Morgan Harper Nichols