You are not buried. You are planted 🌱
The Best Line I’ve Ever Heard in My Life
“Sometimes when you are in a dark place, you think you’ve been buried, but actually, you have been planted.”
Take a moment to let that sink in.
It’s a profound reimagining of what it means to face challenges. What if the moments that feel like endings are, in fact, just beginnings in disguise? What if the darkness that surrounds you isn’t there to suffocate you but to nurture your growth?
When I first came across this line, it felt like a slap and a hug at the same time. It jolted me out of my own self-pity and comforted me with a truth I desperately needed to hear: life’s hardships aren’t there to bury you — they’re there to transform you.
Why Darkness Feels Like the End
We’ve all been there. The moments where you feel overwhelmed, hopeless, or stuck. Life throws everything at you, and instead of standing tall, you feel yourself sinking.
For me, it happened when I became an international student, navigating life far from home, I’ve often questioned whether I could meet the demands of the life I chose. At first, it felt like I was buried under the weight of it all — mental challenges, emotional struggles, financial burdens, academic pressures. Add to that the gnawing feeling of being an outsider.I felt buried.
But what I didn’t realize then is this: being buried and being planted feel exactly the same at first.
The Power of Perspective
Here’s the mind-blowing truth: it’s not your situation that defines you, but how you choose to see it.
When you’re in the midst of darkness, it’s tempting to see it as an end. But pause. Look deeper. What if this moment is your soil? What if every obstacle is enriching you, every struggle is watering you, every failure is sunlight breaking through the cracks?
The truth is, seeds don’t grow in the light. They grow in the dark. Beneath the surface, in the unseen, messy, suffocating soil, they transform. And when they’re ready, they break through — not despite the darkness, but because of it.
The Science of Growth
Think about how muscles grow. They don’t strengthen without resistance. In fact, lifting weights literally tears muscle fibers apart so they can rebuild stronger. Think about diamonds — they’re just carbon until immense heat and pressure turn them into something extraordinary.
The same principle applies to us. Struggles are not the enemy — they are the catalysts for transformation.
So, What Do You Do in the Dark?
This is where your mindset becomes your superpower. When you’re buried — or planted — you have two choices:
- You can resist the darkness, clawing at the soil, wasting energy on fighting what is.
- Or you can embrace it. Trust the process. Use the time to grow stronger, to build resilience, to prepare for your breakthrough.
Every time I faced a setback — whether it was failing at something I worked hard for or feeling like I didn’t belong — it was tempting to give in to despair. But every time, I reminded myself: this is not the end. This is a beginning. And that shift in perspective changed everything.
A Challenge for You
Here’s a thought experiment. Think back to a dark time in your life — something you thought you wouldn’t overcome. Now look at where you are today. Can you see how that moment shaped you? How it prepared you for something greater?
The soil you once resented might have been the very thing that enabled you to bloom.
A Final Thought
The next time you feel like life is burying you, stop and ask yourself: What am I becoming? What roots am I growing that I can’t see yet?
Remember this: no seed stays underground forever. With patience and resilience, you will break through the surface. And when you do, the light will seem all the brighter because of the darkness you’ve endured.
You are not buried. You are planted 🌱
