Surprise!

The sunny weather brought me out in the garden today. As I was pulling out weeds and cleaning out the winter debris, I found a bright red little speck that reminded me of confetti. Remembering it was a kind of mite, I put it in a jar until I could figure out if it was harmful or not. Turns out, it's a Velvet Mite, and it is a natural pesticide, so I tucked him back in the soil. I couldn't help but enjoy the complexity and beauty of the little guy. It was quite a nice surprise.

Another unexpected thing happened while I was out in the garden. As I pulled grass roots out of the soil, some plant roots came up too. As I apologized to my plants for accidentally harming them, it occurred to me that the same thing happens in life. We end up living life with people who are very weedy and before we know it, we are entangled. I even used the word disentangled in my post about my personal troll. It is sometimes necessary to allow hurt to bring peace back into life. In order to work free of the roots that take nutrients out of the soil and rob us of space and growth, we must be gentle but resolute.

Well, I worked on half a bed and got it cleaned up before my body began to tell me it needed rest. I listened and set aside more work for another day. The joy of doing and also not doing is really rich. How much more would we get out of life if we learned the natural rhythms that keep us safe?