Gardening promotes well-being - physical, mental, emotional & spiritual.
A good life is one that has a balance of those four elements and gardening can help provide that balance.
1) Physical >>> By digging a garden - our brains take a
rest. The body needs a good work out and gardening provides a life
long pursuit. Good robust physical health is a big factor in good
mental health. When the body works hard during the day - this promotes better sleep - which in turn helps keep us more stable emotionally.
2) Mental >>> In the act of not focusing on our mental
process and
problems and by engaging with the garden our minds can focus on the
present and
doing something positive. Over time this can lift the mind out of
negative patterns. The mind is allowed time to just be. Shifting the
focus onto our current task allows the brain to take a break, a chance
to still the barrage of thoughts that our brains are constantly
processing. After a while of work the brain can reach rest - while the
body keeps active. A zen like stillness in the course of simple
activity.
3) Emotional >>> The garden brings us into contact with
others. Neighbours, friends and relatives. A garden or plant that is
shared with loved ones is a great positive emotional boost.
While working in and on the garden - feelings of boredom, freedom, happiness and sadness can bubble to the surface and be given time and space.
In the process of creating and working in a garden our own self esteem is raised - there is a tangible result for our labour and a job well done is good for our emotional well-being.
4) Spiritual >>> Being in touch with the soil - is a
spiritual experience. It is grounding and can bring us back to a simpler more honest way of life. It can leave the mind quiet - and able to rest. In times of stillness like that we are able to hear more of the inner side of
ourselves. To allow God to speak - comfort, ideas & inspiration. I have often found a deeper part of myself able to speak while gardening. Good ideas about loving myself or others well. Or just being able to reach something more vast than myself.
The job of gardening is a constant process that mirrors a type of spiritual inner work - an inner garden. Things like nurturing plants, raising seeds, weeding and planning a garden - are mirrored in a parallel type of inner work. So for example a biblical law like - the law of sowing and reaping can be applied to any kind of intangible realm like love. By sowing love. We have a greater chance of experiencing love. This applies to other intangibles - like joy and kindness. We can also find it useful to work on not sowing weeds into our inner garden. Promoting weeds like bitterness, envy and hate - will lead to more weed seeds - so in that sense we are responsible for our harvest.
Going deeper in the garden can offer a real transformational process on the four main levels of our being. In a very real sense - gardening is holistically good for us!
Thanks for taking the time to read this blog.This is the end of a 12 part blog series - on 'How To Garden'. Feel free to read the others in the series by following the links on this blog page.
I hope you enjoy your garden this season - that you have time to be still, to be happy and take it all in.
Love Sage. X
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Personally - moving from a cerebral office life to a gardening centered life has done me a lot of good. I have found that the garden offers more than the surface activities. Running a business can be stressful. But I feel that the garden has taught me a lot of good lessons - and I continue to learn. If you would like me to come and have a look at your garden this coming season. Call me in. I can work with you to produce a better garden - a less chaotic and more tranquil haven for you and your family to enjoy.
