When I lived in a townhouse community of nine units, I volunteered lots of time in the shared gardens behind our homes. I was accused of giving special attention to the flowers near my back door because the plants there were always the most vibrant and beautiful.
Those near the door of the people who intended to grab, and keep, the power, in whatever ways they deemed necessary, had the worst plants near theirs–scrawny and often in the process of dying, or barely holding on. The man and his wife were the ones who screamed loudest about my failing to give much attention to
the gardens near them.
It didn’t seem to phase them th at
I was volunteering. The truth of the matter–that plants just didn’t do well near them–totally escaped their notice.
One of my psychic friends visited and said she saw all sorts of nature spirits, especially around
my unit, because they loved my energy and knew how much I appreciated the green world. That certainly has been true all my life.
I come from a family of homesteaders, explorers, rancher-farmers, and educators.
Even at my new home, neighbors say I “have the touch.” Although I’ ve ne
ver seen them, I’ve long been inviting nature spirits, as I call them, to dwell here and help take care of my things.
I’ve never had bees disappear, as so many people have. They feed on my flowers.
And the wasps, birds, squirrels, racco ons, and foxes, feast
on my raspberries, blackberries, grapes, apples, plums, pears, cherries, peaches. Neighbors marvel that I’ve never been stung. I just reach in past the wasps and bees and pick.
I don’t threaten them. I don’t swat at them. Nor do they scare me.
Whatever paradigm one uses, I believe it’s obvious that those who care about the green world, and learn to nurture and care for it, produce far better results overall than those who care little.