In the winter of 2004-2005 seven inches of rain fell in Death Valley, a once in generations weather event. When spring came the floor of the valley was a carpet of flowers. It had been sleeping, not dead.

I was struck by this account of a rare deluge in a place habitually parched, with the rain kissing slumbrous life into dazzling awakening. It makes you think of other contexts that are ‘simply waiting for the conditions of growth’, including the blooming of human potential, as well as the environment’s.

‘What this proved, of course, was that Death Valley wasn’t dead at all. It was asleep. It was simply waiting for the conditions of growth. When the conditions came, life returned to the heart of Death Valley.’

Source: Ken Robinson, The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything (London: Penguin, 2009), p. 258

Photo credit: Jack Fagan at unsplash