Spring 2022
Can you feel it? Have you felt the cool crisp air caress your skin this morning? Don’t worry if you missed welcoming Spring 3/20/2022 through the front door, because it snuck its way through the back! It will be here for close to 3 months on the meteorological calendar, and there will be plenty of ways to make this season shine in your life!
The Spring Equinox brought the moment where all beings and organisms on Earth were able to connect on a planetary level. The sun rose in the east and set in the west for every soul, and it was one of the two times in the year where day and light were most equivalent in time shared during the day. Think of that moment as a planetary reset button.
I understand if you couldn’t let go of ALL of your worries and woes that ensued in winter, but I want to encourage you to celebrate the things that you DID let go of!
Imagine if your hands were carrying the moments and memories of the past. They would probably be pretty full! That is why it is so special when you let go of even a little bit of baggage. Have you every been surprised at how much a pinky finger can hold? Ideally, it’s best to avoid putting additional stress to these small joints. However, if I had to choose between carrying a grocery bag of 1-2 pounds on my pinky for a short distance and doing another trip, I would totally load up that pinky! My point is, if I let go of a negative memory from my metaphorical pinky, it can allow room for happier memories to enter into my life. This available space can provide new found freedom for self care, picking up a hobby, or taking care of things that you’ve been putting on the back burner for quite some time.
Which brings me to the next part of this blog, encouraging you to make the most of what you have in ways that suit your life and situation.
Spring is the time when the ground is cultivated, mulching is applied(to deter weeds), seeds are planted, and seeds are watered. I want to share with you ways that you can apply these same principals that began with our ancestors and continue to be carried on today by the hardworking farmers of the world. My intention and hope for you is to make the most with the new space and energy you may have found, feel more connected to the food you eat, and the process it took to get to your plate.
4 Steps to Cultivate your Time
Cultivate the ground
Cultivating a garden involves loosening the soil to allow for easy removal of weeds, encourage easier penetration of water, air (this supports micro-organisms in the ground that do work), and nutrients.
It also makes it easier for newly germinated seeds to sprout unto the surface. Occasionally, weeds comes up and are germinated as well during the process, but the young weed sprouts will die on the soil and the germinating process of weeds will be disrupted; allowing for your plants to have adequate water and nutrients.
How to apply this to your life this season?
Winter may have been a challenging season, allow spring to thaw out your heart. Take the time to remove the weeds in your life. Weeds are organisms that take away the resources from the surrounding plants, and let the garden run amuck! Are there certain activities, people, or habits that are taking away your energy? Now may be the time to let them go. How should you do that? In this example of cultivating, loosening the soil is how to begin. Acknowledgement is the first step.
If it is an activity try and take a look at your surroundings to see if anything is fostering it. For example, if you are trying to watch TV less make it harder for yourself to access the remote.
If it is a person that is draining your energy or encouraging behavior you are trying to limit or stop, you may need to loosen the soil. This may require you to reach out to that person and say how you feel, or just limiting the time you spend with them. Doing this will help you get your energy back and you may find that the person isn’t a weed at all, but a plant too that wants to grow. People are obviously way more complicated than plants so try and explore different options to get your point across.
If it is a habit If you are trying to limit or avoid alcohol, tobacco usage, or certain processed foods the best way to go about it is avoid buying it. This can be challenging when living with other people or being part of a community where these habits are regularly exercised.
Mulching
If you want to be on the safe side you can cover the soil with an extra layer of mulch to further smother and inhibit weeds. This organic material will prevent new seeds from germinating.
How to apply this to your life this season?
It is often times easier to focus on the negative - what we are losing, what we need to change, or what we need to stop. How about doing a little spin off instead on all of the things you can gain or you can do instead!
A great question to ask yourself is, “What things can I ADD to my life to facilitate what I would want more of?”
If it is an activity, try to give yourself reminders to pursue the activity. For example, if you are trying to start a running routine a good reminder would be to leave a pair of running shoes at the door. Another example would be if you are interested in reading more instead of watching TV, leave a book where the remote used to be.
If it is a person, maybe making more time for the people that lift you up. It is important to have a community that supports your healthy habits. It can be nearly impossible to maintain some of the changes you want to make if the environment doesn’t support it. Some of the most challenging things we have to do in life, tend to be the most rewarding. It may take effort to step out of your comfort zone to join an online or in-person community, but it will help encourage you to maintain your goals.
If it is a habit, it would be best to try and make the new habit you want to make easier than what you used to do. Two examples come to mind, one is if you would like to eat less processed foods make more fresh fruits and vegetables THAT YOU LIKE available. An option would be to leave a bowl of some of your favorite fruits on the main table of your house to encourage you to eat them when you walk by. The second example involves making it more convenient to instill the new habit. For example, if you would like to go to the gym more, but haven’t gone because you feel it is too out of the way; consider pausing your gym account in search for other ones closer to you. The best option would be to pick a gym that is on the way home.
Plant Seeds
You removed the weeds and added the mulch, now is the time to find your chosen seeds and plant them into your garden! When it comes to planting seeds in your life, it often requires you to carve time in your day and on your schedule to make it happen. We are all different learners, but the more we start to engage our others senses with what we want to do the greater we will be able to instill it. I enjoy doing this by managing my personal calendar with drawings of the activities I’ve done, different scented leaves from a park I visited, or stickers that grab my visual attention when I reach a goals.
The point is you need to make time in your day whether the morning, afternoon, or evening if you want to get it done put it on paper and then do it. Hope can only get you so far, it takes will, dedication, and persistence to get to the end. You can do it!
Water Seeds
Finally, don’t forget to shower those seeds with water and love! You can do this by making sure you that the new activities and habits that you want to instill in your life are practiced routinely. It is helpful when a friend can join you!
I hope you found this blog to be helpful! Feel free to leave a comment how you are tending your garden this spring!