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For a number of days now, i’ve been (somewhat anxiously) watching a certain section of my garden, the area that was seeded instead of filled up with bedding plants. Waiting, looking, even poking around to see if a tiny green sprout exists, hiding under the dirt. i’ve figured that the crops that i’ve seeded – carrots, beets, beans, and peas – are hardy enough to live into the fall, but with such a short, unpredictable growing season, every day counts.
So, it was a joyful experience to finally see a section of wee tiny little red sprouts filling out the beginnings of what will be a row of beets. i felt all puffed up with pride over these baby plants that finally took their first move towards eating up sunlight.
Encouraged by this development, i took the bold move of shoving a spade in the ground to investigate what on earth was going on with my delinquent bean and pea seeds. The verdict: wee worms eating up the tender beans. Arrggh. i eventually found two little beans that were managing to sprout, and got them nicely packed away in their dirt homes again, vowing to start sprouting some beans and peas in a more sterile environment like a nalgene bottle this week at work. Maybe that will get them the head start they need.
As i finished my snooping around underground and returned to the much more routine task of watering, i thought about what it would be like if it were only that easy to unpack some of the problems that i see the kids at work struggling with. So many times, we staff all know that there is a ton of stuff going on under the surface that is keeping a client from moving forward in a positive way. Most of the kids we see have pain and problems that run so deep, they often don’t even know themselves how to dig them up or what’s happening in the deep soil of their own life. It’s hard to watch from a removed vantage point and be unable to poke and prod and dig around, to be able to only water what is good, fertilize the positive choices made, weed a little negative behaviour out of the picture, and wait patiently, creating an environment where a sensitive issue can finally sprout up and be identified. Then sometimes, there are the lives that, beyond any caring we offer, are eaten up by the worms of negativity, pain, burdens that we never truly see, except to know that while in our care, no good living thing sprouted up because of those things unseen.
It’s been one of the hardest things that i’ve ever learned to deal with when working with people – the times when there is no growth to be seen, no living, no joy. It’s hard to step back and to know that it’s not reflective of my level of caring or my skill set. Perhaps it’s just not the right environment sometimes, perhaps there was knowledge that i don’t have, or factors beyond my control have truly overtaken my ability to help. Most of the time i’ll never really know.
Then again, from the same vantage point, it is a humbling knowledge that the only thing i can help do to bring life to the surface is to be the waterer, someone who tends to making the environment a safe and welcoming place for a sprout of goodness to surface. i didn’t make those beet sprouts grow, and i don’t make the positive (and often difficult) choices for the youth i care for, but i can live and act in such a way that it’s more likely to happen, and i thank God for that.
i’ve been thinking a lot lately about influence and choices, about how to impact the communities that i live in and around in ways that encourage joyful, fulfilling life. It’s so easy to forget this calling towards a generous and loving life sometimes, so easy to just think of myself and what would make my life easier. Like missing a morning watering just to sleep in another hour or so, it’s so easy just to escape a difficult conversation or follow a lengthy protocol at work, to leave a questions about accountability or about a friend’s dreams about life for banal chatter about the day. It’s not the sleeping in or the simple chats that are the problem, but left on their own, it’s hard to create an environment where something good and meaningful grows. It takes the same kind of commitment as early-morning garden watering to nurture life of any sort, and i’m slowly learning to take these lessons from my garden into the rest of my life. So from beet sprouts to deeper friendships and more meaningful work, i’m trying to keep the reminders from my garden close to heart.
i arrived home in Calgary on Friday to a warm, sunny evening, and then quickly discovered that i hadn’t needed to fret about how i was going to fly home with all my bedding (down duvet, etc) from planting camp.
…No, i hadn’t needed to worry at all. i had forgotten that unlike the mountains, cities generally do not cool off considerably at night, or at least, as considerably as in camp (ie. 30C days dropping to 1-2C nights). And so, i (and my houseguests from Vancouver) have sweated out the weekend in my 2nd-story sauna…er, apartment. The biggest challenge has been the lack of any crossbreeze, since my south-facing living room picture window does not open, meaning that half my apartment gets woefully stuffy without due diligence…and in the worst heat, even despite it. Needless to say, we spent a good chunk of the last few days trying to escape the sauna!
Thanking my mom, Laura Ingalls (of Little House.. fame), and latin-siesta-loving cultures everywhere for great, simple ideas to beat the heat, here is my list for keeping cool:
1: Get outside and go walking…if the breeze doesn’t come to you, then make the breeze happen by walking through the air!
2: Open windows, blinds, curtains at night to let cooler air come in, and then during the day, shut the windows and cover them with heavy curtains, fabric, whatever you have to trap the cool air inside and block the sun out.
3: If you have a moveable fan, place it blowing in at night, and if you must have a window open during the day, use the fan to suck warm air out of the house, and blow it outside.
4: Spray your curtains with water, or hang a wet sheet in front of the window to cool the air passing through
5: If your fan is enclosed, place a damp pillowcase or other small piece of fabric over it to cool the air its blowing around
6: Night is the worst for me. If i’m too warm, i just can’t stay asleep. It may be a little weird, but try getting a sheet soaking wet, then wring it out and sleep under it. It works like a charm for me….perfectly chilly all night long!
7: #6 too weird for ya? Do as the Thais do: shower in the evening, and lay on a towel, still wet, to go to sleep
8: Make using a personal paper fan your new fashion statement
9: Sunburns don’t help; wear loose linen or cotton fabric that covers your skin instead.
10: If there’s one thing that i’ve learned to appreciate about early mornings in camp, it’s this: if all the cooking/baking work is done before 9am, chances are you can keep your indoor temps at least the same as outside, if not lower. So if you HAVE to cook, do it early in the morning or late at night.
11: Dont’ cook. Learn to eat (and enjoy!) cooler, raw (or previously cooked) food. Cool fruit soups (and gazpacho….and cool white wine and cheese dinners…and nutty salads…and cold meats, mustards, and ales…)are delicious!
12: Sleep during heat of the day, socialize late into the night 
13: Freeze your fruit, and enjoy it as-is, or as gourmet ice-cubes in iced tea/tisanes, or blended into healthy, nutrient-packed smoothies.
14: Mint tea….hot or cold, it makes your mouth feel cool!
15: Make sun-tea. Avoid boiling the kettle by placing a jar of water with tea bags and/or herbs (lemon balm, mint leaves, rosemary, lemon wedges, etc) in a sunny window or sunny spot on a patio in the morning, and pour over ice to enjoy all afternoon and evening!
16: Visit your local museum, bookstore, library, art gallery, etc. Chances are, their buildings are air- conditioned or ventilated to keep cool.
17: Go underground. Have a basement? A parking garage? A subway system? Keep your mind open – some of these really unorthodox places can be quieter, or more interesting than your own sweltering abode, are certainly cooler, and well, sometimes choosing these places to hang out can inject your day with that little bit of weirdness that keeps things interesting!
18: Visit your local rec center and go swimming
19: Catch up on films. Movie theatres are often chilly enough that you may just have to bring a wrap or sweater!
20: Turn off your lights, or switch to energy-saving bulbs.
21: Wear a damp bandanna to keep your head cool.
22: Eat spicy food, and embrace the cooling sweat!
23: Eat lightly, and give your digestive system a break
24: Drink water, and lots of it!
25: Have fun. Complaining apparently doesn’t help anything!
