Gardening is an act of defiance and empowerment with the potential to end all wars!
I see the parallels between the war within and the wars that we are witnessing in the collective.
I also see parallels between tending our inner garden and growing our own food as ways to end the need to fight.
Matt Kahn uses the acronym “WAR” to describe a state of being in Worry, Anticipation and Regret.
When we choose to declare the WAR (in our heart) is over, we turn that acronym around to “RAW”, a state of Receiving, Acknowledging and Welcoming all that arises…with love.
Ending the WAR within us is a necessary step to realizing peace is a given and that fighting never brings peace.
From personal experience I’ve learned that it only takes one person in any given situation to end the fighting and to create a ripple effect to end the war in the hearts of those we inspire.
Refusing to fight and dropping our weapons to sure-ender means the “end of being sure” and is an act of defiance and empowerment all-in-one.
Harville Hendricks (a relationship expert) asks, “Do you want to be right, or do you want to be in a relationship?”
Sometimes we have to lean into “not-knowing” to Receive, Acknowledge and Welcome another’s truth without judgement and with an open heart.
This means death to the part of our ego that wants to be right. Not easy, but damn well worth it when peace is our goal.
Grief-walking through the death of our own ego is part of the necessary step to fertilize our inner garden.
As we learn to love another unconditionally we learn to love all aspects of self in the same way.
When we commit to loving ourselves through the shadows (tending the garden through all seasons) we are rewarded with the compost from the necessary destruction in order to bring forth a rebirth and renewal.
With that rebirth comes true empowerment.
Empowerment ensures that we are prepared to take responsibility for our own experience and sustenance.
A necessary step towards opting out of the need to fight is living within one’s means in reciprocity with nature, learning to meet one’s own needs and to be self-sufficient.
This is the never-ending, daily work of a constant gardener.
Tending our gardens, within and without is making a statement with an exclamation point that, “WE GOT THIS!”
The WAR is OVER and it’s time to declare victory!
If we want it 😉
Let’s bring back the victory garden…and as within so without!
For fun, here’s a short history of the victory garden.
Can you imagine a time when the president of the U.S. was promoting gardening to help end the war? Yeah it baffles me! 😂
Seriously though, everyone can grow something!
You don’t need much yard or patio space or any outdoor space at all.
Here’s how I’m growing an indoor victory garden…
The four plants I’ve chosen to focus on and what they represent for my inner garden are:
1.Sweet potatoes represent establishing strong roots to keep us grounded, tapped-into our intuition and well-resourced.
Right now is the time to start some Sweet Potato slips inside.
Check out this link to learn how…
https://homesteadbrooklyn.com/all/2017/1/3/how-to-grow-a-sweet-potato-in-your-home
To me, it just makes sense to replace your philodendrons or other vining plants with edible sweet potato vines and leaves.
2: Strawberries represent the importance of establishing a reward system and engaging in regular acts of self-care and love.
There aren’t many things more rewarding than growing, harvesting and enjoying your own fresh fruit. A fruit, to me, is like receiving a direct “thank you” from Mother Nature, perfectly packaged and naturally sweetened.
Right now we have strawberries growing in baskets hanging from our bunk bed.
3: Aloe represents self-soothing and the ability cool ourselves down when a charge or trigger brings up heat.
Having a solid game plan to hold space for and integrate our emotions…and to then return to a state of inner peace…empowers us and frees us from the need to create unnecessary drama.
Aloe is one of the easiest plants to grow indoors and so versatile as a medicine.
4: Tobacco represents our sacred connection to God/Divine within and a potential gate-way to the Spirit realm.
I personally believe entheogenic medicines such as tobacco can teach us to access our inner healer and shaman, to awaken our third eye, blast open our hearts to receive ancient wisdom and to highlight the deeper Truths.
Tobacco is also a powerful pain reliever when used topically among many other benefits.
As far as herbs that are valuable and tradeable are concerned, it’s hard to beat tobacco.
Thank you for joining me and for all that you do for humanity through the tending of your inner heart-space.
What say we drop our weapons, pick up a shovel…and like Ron Finley says, “Get gangsta” in the garden…and get gangsta with self-love!?!
❤️Pachee
I love that thought - that gardening is radical and revolutionary. Pick up a shovel, a pencil or a paintbrush... create and evolve. Nice post.
Thank you dear one! It sure puts wind in my sails when I shift my perception in that way 😀