Tammy in the garden.
Plants are nature’s gift. They generate oxygen for us to breathe, they bear nutrients to feed us, they supply medicinal properties that heal us and they’re beauty inspires us to meditate.
Whether you have a yard or just a fire escape, cohabitating with plant life is a lifestyle.
We are all well aware that plants require maintenance and upkeep. These green beings are generous in their offerings, but need an attentive environment in which to flourish. Tending to plants is an exercise in observation, inquiry and constancy. Not so different from tending to ones own spiritual development. A gardener’s way of life fosters self-development.
But even the most enthusiastic cultivators can grow fatigued with the constant rigor of fostering new growth.
How can we change the way we see tending to a life outside of us?
Enjoy it instead of working at it. Appreciate the tenderness of new growth more willingly than insisting on more progress. Recognize how established your foundation or root system has become. Relax in where you are now and trust in where you are going.
Use plant life as a way to reflect on your own. When you find yourself weary caring for the life of your plants, take a look at how you feel about your own life.
Ask if you are enjoying yourself. Are you appreciating your progress? Do you recognize your improvement? Do you trust the process of your own enlightenment? And most importantly, are you experiencing your own beauty?
Look intently at your garden and meditate on these questions. Feel yourself slow down as you breath more deeply. Enjoy preparing a healthy meal with fresh herbs and vegetable, or take care of your body with holistic apothecaries of essential oils and herbal remedy’s.
Connect to the earth through these various garden offerings and experience the renewing force of nature.
Be the sunlight in the garden of your soul. Believe that what you have planted will harvest. Become curious about what your unique story will yield. Nature is your mirror; gardening is an opportunity to reflect on your own passage.
Tammy Wise is owner of BodyLogos Inc. Active Meditation for Fitness, Beauty & Wellness. Please visit her websites at BodyLogosFitness.com and BodyLogosBeauty.com.
From: Alicia Kirschenheiter | 7/13/10 at 5:33 pm
I love the reflection. This totally speaks to being mindful in everything you do. Focus, pay attention and enjoy.