BY DOVE
I am a gardener, and I am blessed to have earth to play in. The rain made the earth soft and workable. My neighbor was having his lawn fertilized the other day with a liquid spray and I went out and asked the man if it was an organic solution. His reply was no, and I respected the choice of my neighbor without any need to change their minds about what they were putting into the ground.
I started thinking that maybe I should have my yard treated also but I heard this inner voice tell me there are other choices. Would you poison your own body with chemicals? Of course the answer was no. I would not put into Mother Earth anything that would harm the living organism we reside upon. I remembered that last fall when I was seeking a way of digging weeds that did not require me to use a weed digger and strain my arm to the max to get the weeds out. Again, I listened to that inner voice that said swing by the nursery—they will have the perfect tool for weed removal.
I was on my bike and I made the stop. Sure enough, there was one tool left that all you did was push the four prongs into the earth around the base of the weed, turn the handle, and low and behold the weed—root and all—came out effortlessly. My young grandson was so taken with the process that he offered to remove many of the weeds. I told him I would pay him for his efforts, and he replied he wanted $2 per weed. I had no idea where that value came from, but I knew that he indeed valued himself. We settled on $5 for a large bucket of weeds and he went after it.
This tool makes weeding fun, really it does! Every time I am weeding, I think about all the thoughts that run through my mind, most of them good, but every once in a while a thought pops in that really needs to be thrown away, just like the weeds. Wouldn’t it be magical if we could identify the thoughts that keep us stuck and unhappy. Or, any past negative memories that hurt could be plucked out of our mind, never to return with the ease that the weeds are plucked out by the weed tool.
The image in my mind as I weed is I am cleaning my house and my mind of negative thoughts and energies. It is very satisfying, and weeding leaves me feeling free and uplifted. Also, my garden relishes the attention and joy I feel.
My grandfather was a gardener and he lived next door to me for much of my life. Every evening he and his wife “Phronie,” as he called her, held hands and walked through the garden. They touched the plants and sent them love, row after row. The produce was sweet, succulent and abundant.
What a blessing it has always been to connect to the Earth that nurtures us. Take a moment today, and every day, put your bare feet on the Earth and bless it with your energy. Release the weeds of your mind and feel the love from the Earth returning to you. You can do this.