A Story of Growth, Healing and Transformation
Sometimes the most ordinary things can give us the most wonderful reminders about ourselves.
Through September, I have been picking blackberries from bramble bushes.
As I stood there, carefully reaching between the leaves and thorns, something about the whole process made me stop and think.
I found myself wondering…
What if the brambles are a little like the weeds and tangled thoughts in our minds?
And what if the blackberries are a reminder that, with patience, gentleness and the right conditions, something beautiful can grow?
The Bramble
There is something quite fascinating about the bramble.
It can grow vigorously, spreading its long stems in all directions. Its thorns can catch you when you least expect them, and it can quickly become a tangled mass.
Yet those thorns have a purpose too.
A bramble’s dense, thorny growth provides shelter for birds and small mammals, while its flowers provide food for pollinating insects. Later in the year, those flowers become the blackberries we know and love.
And that made me think about our minds.
Sometimes our thoughts can feel just like a tangled bramble.
Overthinking. Worry. Old patterns. Fear. Negative thinking. The stories we have carried with us for years.
They can become so intertwined that it can be difficult to see where one thought ends and another begins.
And just like the thorns on a bramble, some of these patterns may have developed for a reason.
Our brain’s natural response to perceived threat is designed to protect us. Fight, flight and freeze are part of our survival system. Sometimes our minds continue to respond to situations through old protective patterns, even when we are no longer in the same circumstances that originally created them.
The very things that once helped us feel safe, can sometimes become the things that keep us feeling stuck.
But that doesn’t mean we need to rip everything out.
Perhaps we simply need to learn how to work with it differently.
You Can’t Rush a Blackberry
One of the things I noticed was that not every blackberry was ready.
Some were still red.
Some were beginning to darken.
And some were beautifully ripe and ready to pick.
They all belonged to the same bramble.
They had experienced the same amount of rain, the same sunshine and the same changing seasons.
Yet they were not all ready at the same time.
And isn’t that true for us too?
We don’t all heal, change or grow at the same pace.
There is no timetable that says we should have reached a particular place in our lives by a particular age.
Sometimes we need more time.
Sometimes we need more sunshine.
Sometimes we need a little nourishment.
Sometimes we simply need the right conditions in which to grow.
Transformation takes time.
And perhaps one of the kindest things we can do for ourselves is to stop comparing our journey with somebody else’s.
The Gentle Art of Picking a Blackberry
Picking blackberries takes a little care.
If you grab too quickly, the thorns will remind you that they are there!
I put on my gloves and gently reached between the stems.
I didn’t pull at the fruit that wasn’t ready.
I didn’t force it.
I carefully touched each blackberry and, when it was ready, it simply came away into my hand.
That felt like such a lovely metaphor for therapy.
Sometimes we can spend years trying to force ourselves to change.
Trying to stop thinking, to forget, to push difficult memories away.
Trying to be different. But perhaps change doesn’t always need to be forced.
Solution Focused Hypnotherapy can offer a much gentler way of working towards change.
Rather than becoming lost in everything that has happened, we can begin to understand how the brain works, learn ways to calm the mind and develop new ways of responding.
And through my Mind Reboot®️ Butterfly Program for Transformation & Growth, helping clients to work with the thoughts, patterns, emotional responses and behaviours that may no longer be serving them.
Sometimes the process can feel a little like gently reaching into the bramble.
We notice what is there.
We learn to approach it differently.
We don’t have to grab hold of every thorn.
And, just like the blackberry that is ready when it is ready, change can happen in its own time.
From Flower to Fruit
There is another beautiful part of the blackberry story.
Before there is fruit, there is a flower.
Those delicate flowers invite pollinators such as bees and other insects, which transfer pollen from flower to flower. That pollination helps make the fruit possible.
So, before we see the blackberry, there has already been a whole process taking place.
Flowering. Pollination. Growth. Ripening. And eventually… Fruit.
It reminds me of how transformation can happen within us.
We might not immediately see what is changing.
There can be lots happening beneath the surface.
A new thought.
A different perspective.
A calmer response.
A little more confidence.
A better night’s sleep.
A moment when we realise that something which once triggered us doesn’t have quite the same power anymore.
Like the blackberry, the change may take time before we can see the result.
But that doesn’t mean nothing is happening.
And Then There Are the Butterflies…
Of course, I couldn’t write about flowers, nature and transformation without thinking about butterflies.
The butterfly has become such an important part of my work through my Butterfly Bridge Program and Mind Reboot®️ Butterfly Program.
There is something wonderfully symbolic about the butterfly.
It reminds us that transformation doesn’t happen overnight.
There is a process.
A beginning.
A period of change.
And eventually, the emergence of something new.
The butterfly doesn’t become something different by rushing. It follows its own process.
And perhaps we can give ourselves permission to do the same.
Nature’s Little Powerhouses
And then there is the blackberry itself.
These little dark fruits may look quite humble, but they are packed with goodness. Blackberries are a source of vitamin C and contain antioxidants, and they can be enjoyed in so many different ways.
Some of my harvest has already become a delicious blackberry and apple crumble, and blackberry jam.
There is something rather satisfying about taking something you’ve gathered yourself and turning it into something nourishing and delicious.
It is a little reminder that sometimes the things we have to work a little harder for can bring the greatest sense of reward.
There Is Enough to Share
And, of course, I haven’t picked them all.
There are still plenty left on the bramble.
For other people. For the birds. For the insects and animals that depend upon them.
The bramble doesn’t keep everything for itself. It gives.
And perhaps there is another lesson here.
Our own growth doesn’t have to be a solitary journey.
When we become calmer, more confident and more comfortable in ourselves, it can have a ripple effect.
It can influence our relationships.
Our families. Our work. The way we respond to challenges. The way we show up in the world.
When we begin to look after ourselves, we may find that there is more of us available to share with others too.
From Tangled Brambles to New Growth
So, as I look at my bowl of blackberries, I find myself thinking about the journey of transformation.
- The brambles remind me of the tangled thoughts that can sometimes take over our minds.
- The thorns remind me that some of our protective behaviours developed for a reason.
- The flowers remind me that something beautiful can begin before we can see the final result.
- The bees and butterflies remind me that connection and the right environment can help us flourish.
- The ripening fruit reminds me that we all have our own timing.
And the gentle act of picking the ripe berries reminds me that sometimes we don’t need to force change.
- We can approach ourselves with curiosity, compassion and gentleness.
- We can learn new ways of responding.
- We can clear some of the mental clutter.
- We can allow ourselves time to grow.
And eventually, we may begin to notice the fruits of all that work.
- Perhaps a calmer mind.
- Perhaps greater confidence.
- Perhaps better sleep.
- Perhaps a different relationship with our thoughts.
- Perhaps simply feeling more like you
Just as I picked the blackberries that were ready that day and left the others to continue ripening, we too can allow ourselves to grow at our own pace.
Because…
We all have the ability to change.
Sometimes we just need the right conditions, a little patience, and a gentle helping hand along the way.
And maybe, when we stop fighting every thorn and begin to understand why it is there, we can discover that amongst all those tangled brambles… there is something beautiful waiting to ripen.
If you feel that your own thoughts have become a little tangled, and you would like to explore whether Solution Focused Hypnotherapy and the Mind Reboot®️ Butterfly Program could support you, I would be very happy to have a conversation with you.
Sometimes the first step towards change is simply being willing to reach gently into the brambles.
Supporting you through life stresses to emerge as the person you wish to be…
