This morning--sunny outside but hazy in my brain, which even the mighty powers of caffeine could not clear up--I just could not write. It wasn't that I was at a loss for ideas; it was exactly the opposite. All kinds of ideas were begging for my attention, sort of like when each of your family members has something "very important" to tell you ("I just drew a mouse!"; "Evan threw up during class today!"; "I can't find the receipt for the underpants!"), but they're all within inches of your face and telling you at once.
Then, just by chance, I gazed out the window and saw the weeds in my garden. They were calling to me, too. So, out I went, Delilah (darling dog) trotting along behind me. I fetched my gardening gloves and a big bucket, and I began to yank out the weeds. Almost instantly, my mind began to clear, and I knew exactly what to write about today: Pulling up the weeds. Because when you're mentally stuck, sometimes the best therapy is to go outside and do something that's simultaneously productive and mindless.
Before long, my bucket was full. Delilah was blissed-out in the grass after running high-speed laps around the yard. I was happy to have aerated my brain. As we headed back inside together, we were refreshed and ready to face the day.
Have you ever found that gardening heals your state of mind? What other outdoor activities help you with "mental weeding"?
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I love this!
Working in my garden, planting seeds, watering my little seedlings and weeding has definitely been helping me clear my head of many stresses lately.
Posted by: Christy | 05/13/2013 at 09:47 PM