Thursday, May 20th, 2010 by Debra Oakland
My friend Steve Tallamy is a guest writer here at Living in Courage. Steve has written “The Neglected Garden” from the heart. Steve is a nature lover who is very connected to Mother Earth, and her beautiful kingdoms. I look forward to sharing his articles once a month, which are sure to be filled with wisdom, humor and guidance. Visit Steve at http://stevetallamy.com/
http://writeforyoursite.co.uk/
The Neglected Garden
We have all seen that piece of wasteland in our neighbourhood that the developers get their hands on to turn into luxury flats that no one in that area could possibly afford to buy. Or we have taken over a new home where the once beautiful garden has long been neglected. The first thing we or the developers do is to bring in the troops to dig, burn and spray to indiscriminately clear the land of everything that once grew there. Come the spring the land is barren, no colour, no scent, no shape or form. Except if you look close enough the shoots of those deep rooted tough old thorny brambles and thistles. These hardy plants (they are plants, not weeds) survive and will flourish again, multiplying year upon year. Even if we build our new homes or construct new gardens on top them they will eventually push their way through in their desire to live.
These words came to me not when building a new home or giving my garden a makeover. They came with a brand new awakening from inside of me. For years I have been on the path of finding the real me, to make a better life for myself, a life of happiness and love with a good chunk of financial stability thrown in. After beginning my new program of healing, things are become clearer day by day, slowly but surely, bit by bit, I am learning more and more about myself. Now, I see my former self as that neglected garden, the troops as the many so called Guru’s I have listened to and believed; the digging, burning and spraying are all of the self-development books and videos I have read and watched. I turned myself into the barren landscape of no colour, scent, shape or form, having stripped myself not only of the unwanted plants but the ones I needed to keep but didn’t recognize. Of course the brambles and thistles of my deep rooted fears now had plenty of room to flourish; choking me with even more self-doubt than ever before and without any shape or form to build upon, my soul became a neglected wasteland again.
The lesson we can all take from this is to look at our gardens before stripping them bare, seek out the beauty, the shapes and forms of our lives that we love and enjoy. Do this before we clear away the brambles and thistles, nurture the roses and fruit bearing trees and come springtime there will be a balance in our garden and more harmony in our lives. But never forget to prune and feed it from time to time or the wasteland will return stronger and more powerful than ever before. Having a love and respect for Nature is having a love and respect for yourself, for you and Nature are one.
Steve Tallamy
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Monday, October 5th, 2009 by Debra Oakland
“Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.” Marcel Proust
Who would want to visit a garden that is full of waist high weeds, colorless and uncultivated? I would not, simply because it is lifeless, neglected and kind of sad. Even if you planted a beautiful seed, it has no water, or care. There is nothing to nourish this beautiful plant to take root.
Now imagine a colorful garden full of beautiful flowers, or food growing in abundance. The area has been prepared, seeded and the little plants raise their courageous heads to the sun, in anticipation of growth and change. You can compare these two scenarios to the mental bodies of the human race. Each person is different, according to what has been planted in the garden of their consciousness. The mental body is a magnetic field, and through the power of your attention, draws into itself whatever it is being fed. What are you feeding yours? Garbage such as anger, judgment, blame, jealousy or even hate? Or, are you feeding it peace, joy, abundance, love, and a sense of knowing that you get to choose? The healthy plant that is loved and cared for carries a pattern of perfection within itself, just as you do. Are you willing to hold that pattern in your mind in a receiving way until it can be externalized? Have the courage to cultivate, feed and water this pattern of perfection that wants to expand and express itself in, through and around you.
When you get an idea, it is the responsibility of the mental body to hold this idea clearly – long enough for your feelings to breathe it into life. How does this happen? By breathing love, enthusiasm and expectation into the idea. It is like a rhythm that accompanies this pattern of perfection you wish to manifest into form. How do we fail or fall short of this? As I mentioned earlier, our mental bodies are meant to be a clear, magnetic field. It is cultivated and ready for planting. When we put accumulated concepts, mass consciousness of fear, doubt, failure, doom and gloom into this beautiful garden of our mental body, there is no space for the good stuff to grow.
The mental body receives through the power of your attention, as well as through the activities of the senses. So imagine your attention connects with something, good, bad or otherwise. Now your mental body forms a picture of it in your mind, and through the senses, whatever you have placed your attention on, enters the mental body and adds to what is already there. In many cases, there is an accumulation of discordant garbage. If we keep storing the same old garbage, there will be no room for the beautiful life we all want to live. Start by pulling some weeds out of the garden of your consciousness. Maybe your garden is beautiful and yields great and wonderful life experiences. Now and then, you may find a few new weeds, or a couple of really big ones that need removing. Go on in, and pull them out. Then move on, without resistance, just knowing that all gardens need weeding, and constant tending to stay beautiful. Just like you.
Here are some very wise rules to live by that will help your garden grow.
Watch your thoughts; they lead to attitudes.
Watch your attitudes; they lead to words.
Watch your words; they lead to actions.
Watch your actions; they lead to habits.
Watch your habits; they form your character.
Watch your character; it determines your destiny.
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