Root to Bloom

Life and gardening are the same. If you neglect your duties in either, they'll fall to ruin at the mercy of the whims of outside influences, and the chances of you creating something you can be proud of, something you can feel at peace with and nourished from, will be slim.  You must be an active participant.

When you garden, you've first got to think of what you want to grow. It's important to consider and prioritize because you can't grow everything, so you've got to decide on a few plants that you absolutely know you want. Then you get the seeds, plan out planting conditions, prepare the soil, pots, etc. After planting your seeds, you've got to be diligent and consistent, working hard every day, out there watering and cultivating those little seeds and seedlings.

At the same time, you've got to know your weeds in the garden. Some things that crop up will be good, maybe provide some food or medicine that you can use, or maybe they can support the growth of the seeds you've planted, helping them to flourish. Keep them, and nurture them just like you would your seeds, as they are a part of the garden, too.

Other weeds may be cool to see but just aren't good for your garden. Some are poisonous, some are perfectly fine in their own right but they will overshadow the seeds you've planted and won't allow them to grow. Either way, these weeds have no place in your current garden and must go, for the overall long-term wellbeing of your plants.

It's very important to constantly keep an eye out and understand which weeds are which, and then do what you must do.

For example: I want my passionflower vine to grow. It will provide me with healthy and tasty fruit as well as good medicine from the leaves.

But I have a Virginia Creeper vine on the same length of fence - I like it, it's pretty to watch the leaves change in fall, and I've had it for years. Plus, it takes a lot of work to keep it trimmed back. But it's berries are poisonous, it overruns my passionflower, and it allows rats to get in the attic. It's a sad decision, but I know it's got to go.

In gardening, as in life, it does not serve you well to sacrifice what is best for you in the long run for what is nice and easy now. It takes a lot of strength, courage, wisdom, and will to grow a truly successful garden or a truly successful life.

Sometimes something out of your control may happen - a sudden violent storm, an unexpected freeze - that leaves your garden wiped out and you left with nothing but dirt. You take a moment and mourn, but then you set yourself to the work of planning out those seeds again, and plant them! Soon enough, with the right diligence, your garden will be growing again, perhaps even better than before due to lessons learned from the tragedy.

As seasons change, what you need to grow may change, the seeds you choose to plant may change, and so might the weeding that needs to be done.

But one thing remains constant: plant your seeds, know your weeds, then nurture them or pull them up by the roots as necessary. It's simple, but not always easy.

Always keep the garden of your life in mind. When faced with difficulties, look at your garden: be mindful of the seeds you've planted, make sure the weeds you're watering are encouraging the growth that's best for you, make sure you're decisive about weeding out the plants that do you and your other plants no good. What you nurture is what you will harvest.

The metaphor of the garden applies to situations, things, even people in your life. If you follow the principles of the healthy garden, then ultimately what will grow is what is of the greatest good for all.