I am currently serving as, what you might call, our yard “engineer”/ “architectural mechanic”/ “laborer”. In other words I am working on building arbors, fences, gates, and even walls, throughout our yard. I am in that mode where I have my mind on tools so my thoughts are focused on how to manoeuver in tight corners with my screw gun, drill, shovel, and cement mixer. But lately, whenever a leaf brushes against my body-face, hand, leg, I am aware of it more than seemingly ever before. I find myself saying “sorry beautiful plant” to the plants!
Of course, my earthy Irish rural ego kicks in saying “what-what are you saying, you’re a construction worker, and no self respecting construction worker, especially from your homeland, would be seen dead apologizing to a plant for disturbing it while going about his daily work. How in the world would we ever get anything done in the garden if every worker were to go around doing THAT?”.
I know my ancestors would at least raise a quizzical eyebrow, if not turn, in their graves, if they heard me say what I am going to say now, but every time I do talk to the plants on my work site I feel happier working on the site!. It feels as if I am a partner with the plants! And I get more screwing, drilling, building, cement mixing etc done!
I found another person who has a more refined viewpoint about this relationship with nature- Masanobu Fukuoka. I very humbly bow to his greater achievements and quote from him now-
“To become one with nature — agriculture is an occupation in which a farmer adapts himself to nature. To do that, you have to gaze at a rice plant and listen to the words from the plant. If you understand what the rice says, you just adjust your heart to that of the rice plants and raise them. In reality, we do not have to raise them. They will grow. We just serve nature. A piece of advice I need to give you here. When I say gaze at a rice plant or stare at its true form, it does not mean to make an observation or to contemplate the rice plant, which makes it an object different from yourself. It is very difficult to explain in words. In a sense, it is important that you become the rice plant. Just as you, as the subject of gazing, have to disappear. If you do not understand what you should do or what I am talking about, you should be absorbed in taking care of the rice without looking aside. If you could work wholeheartedly without yourself, that is enough. Giving up your ego is the shortest way to unification with nature“(more)
Home-Grown Food Network aims to bring gardeners together to share their experiences of creating edible landscapes around sustainable dwellings in low cost settings. I find that my love of working and accomplishing my projects in the yard is intensifying my commitment to expand Home-Grown Food Network. I am using every single opportunity to speak publicly about its successes. I find that every time I speak about my experiences of feeling peacefully happy at the end of my day working in triple digit heat outdoors is drawing more people into our network. That is an unexpected bonus of my new found relationship with nature.
I am excited to discover that my being more aware of plants as a life form is indirectly helping people become more confident about their ability to grow more food in their yards.
Peter Naughton, Manager, Home-Grown Food Network Inc
Filed under: Partnering with Nature, Teach your children, Ultra low cost housing, recycling in the yard, wabi-sabi
