Don’t tell
anyone, but today, for a few moments, I stood in the middle of my garden in
bare feet. Yes, squishing dirt and pebbles and maybe a worm or two between my
toes. I know, it sounds dirty and gross; but it felt wonderful ~ a stress cure
~ like child’s play (think mud pies, blowing bubbles,splashing in puddles).
Standing there, I looked again at the beauty of a garden. I really can’t even
take credit for all the balance it provides. Sure, I work the dirt, spread a
bit of mulch and drop in a few seeds here and a planting of varieties there,
but the real sense of calm comes when you stop a moment and look at how the
garden grows.
When I was
younger, I thought gardens were for senior citizens and farmers who had a lot
of time on their hands. I thought gardens meant nothing more than a
labor-intense, continuous, tedious, endless chore of weeding and watering. I
was wrong. Gardening is not for Sissies. Gardening is a Science. In fact, those
“old people” and farmers who passionately garden? I wouldn’t mess with them.
They know what they’re doing.
Now that I’m
“older”, I understand that long gloves, floppy hats and pruners are standard
tools for the trade of a gardener and that cultivating can be done with
relative ease in between the rest of Life’s duties. However, once one gets
caught up in a garden and all its glory, you begin to wonder why anyone would
want to rush through the experience. Where else can you unabashedly hum on the
top of your lungs your favorite tunes and breathe in fresh air while clearing
your mind? In fact, I can get lost in my garden at times; I subconsciously
solve problems by letting my mind rest in a lazy, peaceful, soothing way. My
little planned 10X10 plot is my little connection to nature; where plants offer
condolence, joy, harmony and give back a bit of love: the colors (!) the
textures (!) the smells (!) And who would dare argue that anything tastes
better than what you’ve grown in a garden? Just biting into a juicy tomato,
cutting cucumbers and zucchini or adding herbs to a summer meal makes one
appreciate what nature can give back.
What a delight to the senses a garden can
be!
Maybe it’s
the idea that plants are alive, giving you a sense you are interacting with a
life source. And as a result, you, the nurturer, tending and coaxing the little
sprouts into healthy maturity, reap the benefit of the vitamins and minerals we
need for a healthy existence. And as an added benefit, your sweet-talking (yes!
I talk to my plants!) assurances encourage them into willingly releasing their
essentials oils for our well-being;
free aromatherapy in the garden!
On sunny days,
I love to bask in the garden with the warm rays kissing my neck. It is a
welcoming place, a tech-free environment where birds sing, bees buzz and
butterflies soar; the physical energy of weeding, watering, trellising and
pruning gives me zip-pep-and-go while relaxing me at the same time. What an oxymoron! This is just how a small
patch of earth can inspire healthy habits.
Eventually,
I had to put on my shoes and go back to the busy-ness of Life. But, oh! What
wonderful madness moments are spent in the garden! And don’t worry. I rinsed my
feet before getting into my nicely-made-this-morning bed.
Carpe-Diem!
