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I’ve tried to be a gardener a few times, and I was successful in growing zucchini and flowers. If I had spent more time weeding, I think my garden vegetables would have had more of a chance.

We are so much like my vegetable garden. Sometimes we have a difficult time untangling ourselves from the weeds so that we can grow.

We may find ourselves wrapped up in the weeds of despair, envy, addiction, fear and worry, just to name a few.

I have learned that the only thing I can do to untangle myself from the weeds of life, is to cultivate hope.

Fear is the weed that tries to prevent me from living my life to the fullest.

I fear the future challenges I may face as I continue to fight this disease, ALS. I try to replace fear with hope, whenever I can, but sometimes it is hard. Fear can have a way of spiraling out of control. Sometimes it is difficult for me to admit that I am afraid. I rely on people to give me hope, and calm my fears. I have gotten over the fear of asking for help when I need it.

Cultivating hope is not impossible in our sometimes overwhelming lives. We just have to know what we need to help us untangle the weeds, and then we have to have the courage to go and find it.