Day 317/366 days Towards Self-Mastery.
Since discovering the devastating and traumatic fallout of inherited and society's beliefs and expectations, I've learned to question everything. That includes the wisdom of pruning in the garden.
Is there something to learn from nature's wisdom herself? Do we always have to dominate her, manipulate and coerce her to bow to our wishes? How would this tree grow if I left her alone, to live her life peacefully, and to trust that she will reward me with her fruits when she is ready?
In the same way I have reservations about grafting and hybridising plants and trees. Can we not trust the genetic evolution of nature herself to provide the most reliable, sturdy plant, and nutritionally dense food?
This whole propensity for control and management of nature bothers me in much the same way that the shaping of a child into the adult we think they should be grates on every nerve in my body. Can we not trust nature and our humanity to produce the perfectly resourceful being that is able to navigate the next steps in our evolution?
Trees are pruned naturally by the wind and rain of the many storms that come our way. So too is our development. As the storms of life assail us, how we emerge from them is determined by our own inbuilt resilience. If that resilience is nurtured through example and role modelling, we expect to naturally cope and adjust to life's vagaries.
When we begin to instruct or shape another based on our lived experience, then we begin the process of imposing our will on others. I don't mean to dissuade you from sharing your experiences. Story and sharing of memories is a great source of knowledge for our young and each other. Let them take from that what they will, and apply it to their lives.
In the same way in the garden, I want to trust nature to show me what works best. If I need to prune to restore or shape for any reason it will be after much deliberation and consultation with nature herself, and not only for the purpose of producing the next crop of fruit or flowers.
In the back of my mind always, are stories of forgotten gardens, overgrown with weeds and self-sown saplings, from which are picked the sweetest fruits. So too are stories of those who hail from what we might consider as very disadvantaged beginnings, yet have grown into immensely successful adults.
366 days Towards Self-Mastery
When I considered my New Year's intentions for 2020 I had just one: To allow my heart to love what it loved...and let it lead me. (If not now, then when?)
I've spent months working on integrating my life. To live life more fully with my home life, my interests, my work, my responsibilities, all coming together, all connected. I want to give each the attention that they desire and need, and still have time and energy for the others. That means living and working from the heart.
As I was clearing out my bookshelf over the Christmas break I discovered Simple Abundance. I set it aside to explore it on New Year's Day as I lazed through another delicious day of nothingness. Sarah, the author, says this book is about living in grace. Living in grace I realised, is about Self-Mastery.
My thirst for understanding the human condition has driven me all my life, and hand-in-hand with self-mastery it has been a life-long goal. And seeing as I love to write, that living in grace is about self-mastery, and I love a bit of a challenge, then if I am truly going to let my heart lead, I really don't have any other choice. So scary as it feels, I'm starting out on a daily mission of leaning into the suggestions of this daybook and making a daily post to keep me accountable. If not now, then when?
I'm Josie. You can find out a little more about me here.
Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy: by Sarah Ban Breathnach.
This book is written for the Australian and NZ market because it refers to seasonal changes. It's available on Amazon here if you'd like to follow along.