Freezer Seeds

So here I am, rooting around in the freezer on this cold January day, and what do I find but a baggie full of last summer’s tomato seeds. What a wake up call…it’s been a full year since we planted similar seeds in little cow pots under the grow lights!

2009 lessons learned:

1. Don’t plant so early. I still have mental images of us outside, frantically covering the little baby tomato plants with everything we could find (and yes, ‘everything’ included the ugliest bed sheets on the planet, much to the hilarity of our neighborhood).

2. Don’t plant so much. Convinced only a few seedlings would emerge I stuffed multiple seeds into multiple little pots packed into multiple trays…and yes, you guessed it, almost every darn plant germinated. Thus we were left with way too many plants (“are you sure tomatoes have to have so much space in between?”)

3. Leave more space. Again, my gardening enthusiasm got the best of me and I put too many plants too close together to the detriment of all. Don’t get me wrong…we had a sizable harvest, and for the first time, actually preserved some of our own produce. But many of the plants were too close to really stretch out and flourish.

So…how will I apply what my garden taught to my life in this New Year?

1. Don’t plant so early. I’m always too anxious in early January to set my course for the year…I tend to volunteer for things that later turn out to be just a little off, I buy into programs that later are disappointing, etc. In 2010, I’m striving to wait…move slowly…let things come to me rather than chase them down in a full-out tackle.

2. Don’t plant so much. Think of the terms ‘less’, ‘fewer’, ‘subtract’ and you’ll get the drift. I’m going to concentrate on doing fewer things well rather than taking on activities in multiple dimensions and cutting my productivity in the process.

3. Leave more space. I’ve been guilty of ‘square foot living’ (all you gardeners out there know what I talking about)…how much can I cram into how little space or time in hopes of large production? I’m moving away from busyness to see what emerges when I don’t over-commit. I’m learning to say ‘no’…and mean it.

Best wishes to all as we enter this new decade. And good luck with whatever plans you have for the New Year!

January 6th, 2010 - Posted in Gardening and Life | | 0 Comments

Integrated Pest Management

Okay, I’m borrowing a phrase from my gardening books.

“Integrated Pest Management” refers to those horticulture practices that are aimed at reducing the effects that particular pests have on your garden (insects, viruses, fungi) without trying to eradicate them.  Eradicating (i.e. completely wiping out) those pests can have other unintended side effects…for example, destroying an insect may remove an important food source for a bird who is also a crucial pollinator for your plants.

I think this is a great metaphor for what we need to do with our lives.

I often talk with people who are trying to ‘eradicate’ all the negative people in their lives–those who do not support them, or those who actively oppose them, or those who just plain make life miserable.

It makes sense to me that we should try to reduce the number of these folks.  Who needs an entire chorus of ‘pests’ who continually criticize and condescend to us?  Sometimes they pop up from the past (old Uncle Charlie who told us we’d never amount to anything) or the present (colleagues who fight us at every turn in real or imaginary power struggles).

Mostly, we want positive influences in our daily lives.  Those friends, family members, or colleagues who see our strengths and help reinforce them.  The person ‘in our corner’ who backs us no matter what.

On the other hand, the pests serve an important purpose, and like integrated pest management for gardening, I’m not so sure that we would want to eradicate them altogether.

Those pests keep us on our toes.  The pests from the past serve as a constant reminder of the kinds of relationships we don’t want in our present lives.  When a new pest wanders into our present life, the ‘red flags’ (feelings, observations) from the past often help us avoid repeating a damaging kind of relationship.

Pests in our current lives can also encourage us to perform at higher levels…there is often nothing as motivating as someone who says ‘you can’t do that’ to which you think to yourself ‘oh yes I can, you just watch me!’

So on the eve of this year’s gardening season (at least in Michigan), let’s take a page from the horticulture book.

Let’s keep just enough pests in our lives to motivate us but not so many that they defeat us.    It’s all about balance…in nature, and in our personal lives.

Keep growing!

March 10th, 2009 - Posted in Gardening and Life | | 0 Comments

Waiting for a Break-Through

So a couple of weeks ago, on an unseasonably warm and sunny day (83 degrees in Michigan, unheard of) we planted the first of the 2010 crop. The cool-weather things: lettuce, spinach, beets, garlic, potatoes, and peas.

Of course, each day since then I’ve anxiously surveyed the plots, looking for those little tell-tale signs of emergence that promise a hearty growing season down the road.

This week in client sessions, I’ve found myself thinking about that waiting-for-growth period in the garden, and how similar it is for all of us waiting for a particular life dilemma to be resolved.

An unresolved issue of any kind…relationship, grief, job, whatever…tends to occupy our thoughts disproportionately. We peer at it from different angles (is that a little green shoot?), haul it out for closer inspection (maybe if I get down on the ground and look sideways), and talk with friends and family to get their input (come out to the garden, maybe you can see better than I can).

All of this is worth doing if it helps get us to a point of acceptance, even before resolution. When it becomes excessive (no, thanks, I don’t need dinner, I’m just going to sit here and watch things grow) perhaps we need help from someone less invested in the outcome (Nancy, it is midnight, come inside now).

I wish you much success as you work toward resolution, and watch your gardens grow. Remember to ask for help if you need it. Because we all need help sometimes.

And by the way, the garlic is up. Really, it is.

November 30th, 1999 - Posted in Gardening and Life, Health: Emotional, Physical, Mental, Spiritual, Parenting, Uncategorized, Work | | 0 Comments