Pruning Hurts, But It Encourages Growth

I have a black thumb.  You can hold that truth to be self-evident.  Because I lack nurturing skills, I have been ever-impressed with the desert plants here in this part of the country that will grow and thrive despite the circumstances.  

Take the plant at left as Exhibit A.  Nearly all the plants, bushes and trees here in Arizona were damaged by repeated frosts this winter.  Now that the weather is warming, all these damaged plants have been pruned down to the ground.  Nothing careful about it.  

How amazing that this doesn't kill them.  They grow right back, stronger and more vibrant than before.  I did a bit of research on pruning, and here are a few interesting things.  Pruning forces growth.  New growth happens close to the pruning cut because dormant buds are stimulated by the cut.  New growth generally results in several stems replacing the single one that was removed.  Pruning permits you to choose the direction a plant's branches will grow.  Thinning plants allows light and air to reach inner branches, and this prevents disease.   

How's that for a metaphor?  (I've pondered on related metaphors here and here.)  I've been feeling much like a pruned bush of late.  I'm just waiting for the new growth to sprout.