032 Let the Rest Fall
Hey Mango, you open thousands of flowers every spring, and you let most of them fall so the few you keep can ripen.
What must we let go of so the rest can ripen?
What must you let go of so the rest can ripen?
In spring, a mango tree is covered in thousands of tiny flowers. Bees hum all over it.
Weeks later, the ground below is covered in fallen flowers and tiny green fruits. Only a few mangoes remain on the tree.
What really happens
Mango trees produce far more flowers than they could ever turn into fruit.
Most flowers and many young fruits drop on their own. The tree puts its strength into the few that stay, so they can grow and ripen.
How we know: Heavy natural flower and fruit drop in mango is well known to growers and horticultural scientists.
The turn
We start too many things: projects, plans, promises.
The mango knows it cannot ripen them all. It lets most go, so a few can become sweet.
Three takeaways
- You cannot ripen everything you start.
- Letting go is how the best things get your strength.
- A few ripe mangoes beat a thousand unripe ones.
Let most fall. Ripen the few.
The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of non-essentials.