a failure to thrive
The target population for this initiative is socially isolated young adults aged 20–30 living in Simcoe County who are navigating complex personal and social challenges that have made it difficult for them to fully engage in work, community, and traditional support systems.
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Orchids & Dandelions
Expanding on the metaphor made popular by Dr. Thomas Boyce in his book, The Orchid and the Dandelion: Why Some Children Struggle and How All Can Thrive, let us examine the strengths of both the orchid and dandelion child.
We are all familiar with the yellow flower known as the dandelion, many people consider them to be weeds because they have the capacity to thrive in any type of environmental conditions, even a crack in the cement. Dr. Boyce theorizes that 80% of our offspring are ‘dandelion children’ — biologically resilient because their genes protect them from environmental assault.
Orchid children, on the other hand, are super feelers who are extremely susceptible to their environment and can easily wilt with the demands of life. However, there is hope. In his book, Dr. Boyce says that “the extraordinary, biologically embedded sensitivities that render such children so unduly susceptible to the hazards and adversities of life, also make them more receptive to the gifts and promises of life.”
In other words, because their super sensitivity makes them unusually responsive to their environment, orchid children are also amazingly successful when exposed to nurturing environments.
This juxtaposition holds a life-giving secret: Within the frailty of an orchid child lies hidden capacities for lives of extraordinary beauty, honesty, and notable achievements that can surpass the accomplishments of the dandelion child. Without super feelers there would be far fewer artists, deep thinkers, or people working in healing professions, the trick to their success is to help super feelers discover their super powers.
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From Surviving To Thriving
Super feelers experience emotions—their own and others—with greater depth and intensity. They are easily overwhelmed, need a lot of downtime, absorb other people’s moods, and are super sensitive to criticism and perceived threats.
Introducing the Wildflower School of Life program, where we will embrace the healing power of horticultural therapy in order to create a safe container for our struggling super feelers to blossom into the extraordinary 'Wildflower' that they are destined to become.
Why a Wildflower? Because they combine the delicate beauty of an orchid with the tenacity of a dandelion, and they thrive in the countryside. The Wildflower School of Life program will be designed to support struggling young adults on their recovery journey helping them to move from barely surviving, to thriving.
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Becoming By Belonging
The Wildflower School of Life will be a therapeutic horticultural day program in Simcoe County for young adults between the ages of 20 and 30 who are struggling with a failure to thrive. Each year our ‘Wildflowers’ will be empowered to overcome their mental health challenges and move towards recovery, health, and greater independence by working on a ‘care farm’ from May to October.
Care farms are therapeutic communities that brings staff and participants together in a safe, nurturing environment to work side-by-side, build meaningful connections, support one another, and hold each other accountable.
Within these communities, a culture is created where participants facilitate change in themselves and in others through engagement in learning, hard work, and programs that promote resilience, while simultaneously receiving clinical care guided by leading mental health experts, social workers, and other health care professionals. This unique approach is designed to build skills and establish a sense of belonging promoting long-term resilience and well-being.
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