Ok so I’m not the world’s greatest gardener and there is still some serious weeding to be done, but I was reflecting on the 5Rhythms yesterday when I was gardening.
First there was Flowing in the sense of gathering information, musing on what might grow in this soil, finding out what Tui’s like to eat, and looking at the garden, taking it in, the shapes, the scale of the job, the slopes of the land and the plants I want to keep. Acceptance of what is there and a circling around the problem, looking at it from all sides. Planning the project.
Then I hit resistance to getting moving, a real inertia about getting started. I had so many excuses – I’m too tired, I’m too busy, it’s too hot, too cold, too wet. Sometimes, my resistance takes the form of distractions: I’ll just go and do the washing, shopping, cooking or other ‘worthy’ pursuits, rather than just get on with doing the garden.
Both the inertia and the distractions are part of the shadow side of Flowing, part of what prevents us from starting a process, a journey, that takes us right through the wave of energy to completion.
Then Staccato. Cutting, pulling, clawing, digging – Staccato is all verbs! Getting down to it, putting it into action. Strong clear movements, using my whole body to haul on the stubborn roots, putting my back into it, using my hips to anchor my spine down to the earth through my legs. Physical expression and action.
Chaos follows – that stage where things can seem worse before they get better. Worse that is, if tidiness and order is the goal – it may not be! Messiness, disorder, weeds all over the path, tumbled soil, scurrying insects, the plants I want to keep, standing exposed and vulnerable.
Ah that’s better! Lyrical, and I can see the progress, more air getting in among the plants, more light and space, the weeds cleared off the path, more lightness in the whole garden.
Stillness, and time for a nice cup of tea. (Yes, you guessed, I’m British!) A sense of completion, the job is done while at the same time, Stillness contains all of the other rhythms. I Flow through the garden, take in the new situation, do some Staccato finishing touches, pull up a weed here, snip a branch there, a moment of doubt as I revisit Chaos, a breath of relief and delight in Lyrical, and returning to a sense of peace and gratitude, completion and fullness in Stillness.
Wishing you a season of Happy Gardening, whether you are working in a real or metaphorical sense, it’s all good!
And wishing you all the very best for the holidays.
5Rhythms® weekly drop-in Classes resume in Lower Hutt in February.
Julie Forsey 04 565 3304
