Gardening stretches the body, eases the mind
9:13 PM Sun, May 27, 2007 | Permalink
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Don’t you get backaches from all the work you’re doing,” asked a man who has been renovating the house next door, just yesterday. I told him that my back is better now than it was 15 or 20 years ago. Bending, digging and lifting, etc. used to give me aches and pain; now I can work longer hours with no lasting physical discomfort. All that pulling, twisting, bending and kneeling become, sort of, a modified, purposeful, goal-oriented yoga to me. I consciously reach out as far as I could stretch -- to cover all the areas around me while I pull out the weed, do the planting or move around. I incorporate many yoga poses into my garden workout. Each time I have to get up from the ground, I lift myself up using 2 hands and stretching my legs the way we do Yoga as if I am doing part of the Sun Salutation. I do not mind sitting on the ground, or the cement, shifting to various sitting positions, sometimes with a small old pillow, put inside a plastic shopping bag that I can easily replace after a day’s work. I get a cardiovascular work in with some hard labor on certain days. Physical gardening work can give you a respite from a very busy thought process. Concentrating on the plant, the soil, the beautiful flowers, the here-and-now situation can be a form of relaxing meditation. I occasionally find myself being retrospective, introspective, and am pleasantly surprised to be reminded of things in the past, while working in the garden. I think of my maternal grandmother, who spent a lot of her time weeding and planting, my grandfather who loved to cultivate orchids and my mother who seemed to enjoy creating her little garden wherever she went. I wonder if I somehow inherited the gardening gene from them. The other day I thought of a kind, centenarian woman who lived at the end of my street and liked to stop in front of my house to look at the garden. One day she signaled me to come to her chauffeur-driven car and asked, “What did you use in your garden that the flowers look so pretty?”My answer to her was, “LOVE.” She gave me a broad, loving smile as her car pulled away. All my plants are now in the ground. Some might need to be moved around later for more room to grow or for more sunlight. 
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This reminds me of my grandmother showing me how to keep cutworms away from tomato plants, and how much my Dad and Mom liked to garden.
My grandmother also taught me how to do cross stitch, and my Aunt taught me how to knit. Plus, there was watching my Mom and Aunts can food.
Do kids learn these things any more?
I am wondering if you have any veggies tucked in your garden? With global warming looming, and oil running out, I am getting worked up about local food/sustainability.
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Thank you for your pictures and story. I feel like I wrote it.
No one LOVES gardening more then me, and I feel the same as you about its benefits.
Last spring I lost my beloved husband to cancer, so I just finished making a MEMORIAl garden for him, in the spot where my Grams\'s peonies are and his lovely columbines. It is now 40 ft by 4 ft. I just love it and I find great peace and contenment working in it. I even have the bird bath there now, and a lovely sign I found that says Grampa's garden. It has many kinds of perenials and annuals.
Thank you for allowing me to share this delight.
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