The ocotillo enchanted me from the first time I learned about it.
I read a sign about this appealing plant in the Phoenix botanical
gardens. Early settlers would build fences from the thorny stems
to keep their cattle in. Often, the stems, after looking
completely dead, would root and spread leaves, grow and blossom,
all within the fence.

The ocotillo has adapted to the desert by practicing extreme
dormancy. In the dry season, it drops its leaves. The leafless
branches are grey and dry and hard. They are straight enough to
place very close to each other in a fence. They have one-inch
thorns that spiral up the stem. The thorns point straight out in
all four directions, and there is barely room to place a finger
between them. With its interesting form, and varied grey lines
down the stems, the dry ocotillo is attractive in a stark way.

When the rains come, the ocotillo transforms. Green leaves sprout
between the thorns until the thorns are scarcely noticeable. More
stems grow from the base, in a reaching rosette. The gently curved
stems seem to sway like underwater fronds, up to twenty feet tall.
And, in season, joyful red-orange blooms burst from the tips like
waving hands. A watered ocotillo is a beautiful, lush, exuberant,
growing plant. A dry ocotillo looks like firewood.

Like the ocotillo, we live through cycles. We have more choices
than a rooted plant. Yet sometimes the resources we need are more
available than others. Sometimes we have to wait to get what we
want or need. What do we do then? Do we rail against the scarcity
of water, wasting energy? Do we patiently drop our leaves until
the rains return? Do we look for new ways to get water?

For me, watching the ocotillos, and realizing that there will be
cycles, has helped me relax in the dry times. Not everything can
happen right now. I can’t do everything at once, and I wouldn’t
want to. There is a time to sleep, and a time to wake. There are
times to work, and times to play. There will be more sun in
summer, and less in the winter. Plants take their time to grow,
and projects advance one step at a time.

Sometimes, waiting will be the best choice. Enjoy it, and you’ll
be ready to blossom when the rain comes.

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Now available! From Wishing to Writing: A Workbook for Writers
(with special attention to science fiction)

It’s here! I have the beautiful version of From Wishing to
Writing, and the new bonuses. Buy From Wishing to Writing and get
the 30 Day Kickstart Your Writing E-Course free. All the details
are here: annaparadox.com/from-wishing-to-writing.

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Small Steps – new feature!

“That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.”
Neil Armstrong, as he placed the first footprint on the Moon.

Each issue, this new section offers a suggestion for an action you
can take now to help humans return to space. We can do it! We
have forty year’s technical advancements since we last sent men to
the Moon!

This issue’s Small Step for Space: Take a child out to look at the
stars.

This is a perfect season to share the wonder of a starry sky. The
sun sets earlier, and yet the nights are not yet too cold. Set
aside an evening to get away from city lights and appreciate what’s
beyond this planet.

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Book Recommendation

A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge

A Fire Upon the Deep puts humans in the middle of a truly galactic
conflict. Seeking to excavate valuable information, a human team
awakens a very old and very malign intelligence. Notice how long
that enemy was prepared to lie dormant until its time came again.
Only the most desperate measures allow a few humans to escape and
give the galaxy a chance to prepare for the coming war. A Fire Upon
the Deep is a truly epic story with inventive aliens, surprising
speculations about thought, and battles between entire fleets of
starships. Not to be missed, and worth re-reading if you’ve read it
before.

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We are smarter together! Please forward this newsletter to a friend.

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Creating Space is my twice-monthly newsletter. In my usual
fashion, I chose the name for more than one reason. One goal of my
newsletter and my coaching practice is to create a space that opens
new perspectives on my clients’ lives. Another goal is to offer
information and support for creating a spacefaring civilization.
It will take many, many steps for humanity to leave the nest of
Earth. Better to take the steps we can than to despair at the size
of the project.

You can subscribe to Creating Space at
www.annaparadox.com/newsletter. And you can ask any questions you
have about my life coaching and editing services by calling me at
505-640-0979 or emailing me at anna@annaparadox.com.

I wish you the power of creating space.
Anna Paradox