Breathing Lessons

My breath could tell a story all its own. When I am frightened, my breath is shallow, slow, stale. When I am excited, my breath is like a pant--quick, uneven, unpredictable. With calmness and relaxation comes a breath that is even and full, open and free. As each moment of each day unfolds, there is a breath that accompanies it. There is a breath that resists or a breath that embraces. And, inevitably, there is a lesson--a breathing lesson. These breaths reflect the lessons I learn in the garden.

One of the most marked events this year in the garden has been the alternate weather. Our weather has not followed its usual pattern with a cold, perhaps snowy, winter and a warmer, but still cool, spring. Instead, we have had an unseasonably warm winter. The ground never froze and hardened, and as spring arrived it was very warm with temperatures sometimes reaching the 90's.

This unpredictability and switch can change the breath in the most experienced of gardeners. I never really went into a panic with hyperventilating episodes, but I was very disappointed. My lament was that I felt robbed of a slow progression and was forced to speed up the process. My breath was in a holding pattern, tense and constricted as I scurried and hurried to get everything done before the heat arrived, the hot heat. It seemed as if it would arrive sooner than normal, and I needed to mulch all the beds, plant all the vegetables, transplant, prune, prepare, plan, act quickly. March sometimes seemed like May. April sometimes seemed like July. Normally, I would take the entire spring to complete these tasks, and I would be into summer before thinking about planting many of the warm weather crops. Things would be on a slower timetable.

Now that most of the work has been done, I can look back and see what lessons I have learned. These are lessons from this season and celebrations of those lessons.

I am joining Beth of PlantPostings for Garden Lessons Learned and Donna of Gardens Eye View for Seasonal Celebrations.

Acceptance

Accept what comes. And not only accept what comes but embrace it with joy and happiness. There is nothing I can do to change the weather. By taking the first step of accepting it, I can at least relax a bit and let my breath be full.

Nature Rules

Although I have some control over my garden, the true ruler is nature. Many times I think there are changes in weather patterns for a whole host of reasons, one being climate change, of course. However, when I look back on weather patterns in my lifetime and my mother's lifetime, I notice there have always been those years when the weather pattern was considerably different than in previous years. I must respect Mother Nature and the subtle and not-so-subtle changes that occur. The Celts honored the rhythms of nature and respected them, and so, too, must I. The long breath of nature is my guide.

Change is Good

There are some advantages to an early and warm spring. I was able to plant some vegetables early. I planted my tomatoes much earlier than I usually do, and I now have tomatoes. Bell peppers and cucumbers are fruiting. I had a crop of lettuce, Swiss chard, kale, and spinach throughout the winter and into the spring. These usually do not survive the winter. When I look at it with an eye of gratitude, my breath relaxes and stretches.

Besides, I would probably be bored if it were not for a good change now and then. <huge sigh>

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© copyright 2012 Michelle A. Potter