The Hibiscus Plant

I once planted a small Hibiscus plant in my backyard. It was watered, nurtured and cared for with lots of love. Gradually, it grew tall with sprawling branches, dense foliage and bright red flowers blooming in bunches.... adding to the beauty of the plant. 

The plant had a rich sap....the aphids and mealy bugs came over and settled comfortably across the branches. The juicy mucilage was too tempting for them to resist. The aphids and mealy bugs secreted honey dew, a rich food for fungi, which grew luxuriantly. The honey dew was also rich in sugars and the ants had a sweet tooth!! So they farmed and tended to the aphids in exchange of pots of honey dew. The ants scurrying across the Hibiscus branches attracted the Prinias and the sunbirds, which loved pecking on the ants amidst sips of nectar. The honey bees, other bees and the beautiful butterflies also hovered around the Hibiscus flowers for the nectar.

I marvelled at the power of love!! I had only loved and nurtured a Hibiscus plant and watched it spread it's love to countless beings.....Nurture a plant and set in motion a cycle.....a cycle of life!!