They tried to bury us. They didn't know we were seeds.

Each year I spend some time at the Latornell Conservation Symposium. I try to attend the day that the Young Conservation Professionals are graduating. The symposium organizers host the graduation during one of the lunch hours, followed by a keynote speaker.

Last year, we heard from Chris Hadfield about what it takes to be a resilient being and how to work through some of the most challenging situations we will face, such as going temporarily blind during a space walk.

This year, Ziya Tong from the Discovery Channel and the board of WWF spoke to us about transformations that are happening around the planet. She spoke about some of the greatest environmental challenges we have created, and are now facing, and presented facts that are difficult to hear. She completed her presentation on a hopeful note though, and quoted this proverb that caught my attention: They tried to bury us. They didn't know we were seeds.

One of the reasons I like to attend conferences like Latornell is that I always leave feeling inspired to do good work. Lately, some aspects of my life have felt a little separate from my day-to-day living and I want to return to the state where all aspects of my life blend into good work. I'm much more comfortable when my job, responsibilities, hobbies aren't chores. Along those lines, I've been thinking about this blog a lot and I am going to start posting about more diverse topics. Most likely native plants will remain a strong theme, but every system is connected and I'd like to start thinking about that idea a little more.