Preparing and Planting
by
Theresa Chaze

The sky was clear with a slight breeze blowing the scent of the awakening spring. I thought it was amazing that in the early part of May I could be standing in the main garden with my spade, turning the soil and clearing the early weeds. There is nothing like the feeling you get working the earth. But preparing the soil and planting the seeds are more than just farming, but a metaphor for much of life. How we preplan and nurture our goals directly affects how they will grow. It would have been very easy to walk across the street and borrow a mechanical tiller, which would have made the job easier and quicker, but I would have missed out on the magic of the energy exchange between the earth and myself.
Last years calluses are long gone. It was just the spade and me. Digging in and turning each shovel full did more than loosened the soil; it added oxygen to the dirt and made it simpler to get the weeds’ complete roots system so they could not grow back. Blessing them as I remove them, I toss them into the field I’ve tithed to the Goddess, giving them the opportunity to again set their roots. In addition, it also makes it easier for the seeds I will plant to grow stronger and faster. For me it is a time to slow down and to be part of something bigger than myself. As all those who went before me set their spade and bent to plant their seeds, so I find strength, courage and humility in the same activity. For them is was physical survival; for me it was more spiritual and emotional healing.
How we garden reflects how we prepare for life. If done properly our goals will grow and flourish, however when we cheat on the process, we only cheat ourselves. If my only goal was to plant and harvest without caring about the result, then I would take the easy route and save myself the blisters. But for me gardening is a labor of love. The vegetables and flowers are side benefits to the connection it gives me to the earth. Simply put, I do it because I love it. Working with the earth feeds my soul as well as my body. When I get my hands dirty, I am able to clear my mind and put life into perspective.
So many people live and work not because they find satisfaction in what they do, but for the material gains. They have chosen training and a profession not because they love the work but for the profits. They have taken the acceptable path only to find that it has not brought them satisfaction. They put off doing what gives them pleasure until the weekends or for when they retire. Instead of fighting for what fills their soul and gives them satisfaction, they take the quicker route only to find the promised rewards are not as fulfilling as they expected.
The question is how do you see your dreams? Are they weeds or crop?
Do you nurture them or try to kill them with things or drugs? As the tiller would have killed the existing weeds, the blades indiscriminately cutting and mangling only to leave the roots to grow back . So do the a person desires and dreams refuse to die. They can once again see them as a nuisance and pluck them from their lives or they can step out of society expectations to nurture that special part of themselves. That is not to say every person doesn’t have the responsibility to care for their lives and the decisions they make. Everyone have the mundane bills to pay and food to buy; yet how much does a person really need? Is your dream worth the too big house, the fancy car, or all the toys ever invented? Or can you pass up the newest gadget to be able not work as much so you would have the time to cultivate your dream? Each person must decide for themselves what is important to them. Is having stuff more important than believing in a dream or do they have the courage to see a weed as a flower?