The Mind's Moves

"The difference between human beings and other beings is our intelligence.  It gives us the ability to look to the future, which in turn brings us worry and anxiety.  But only as human beings do we have the opportunity to deal with the mind."  - Dalai Lama

When I spend time in the garden deadheading daisies so buds may bloom, I focus on the process.  I breathe and tuck a blossom behind my ear.

After several minutes my mind gets in the way while my back begins to tingle from the bending.

I shift position to my knees and tighten my abdomen.  Another breath takes me back to the shriveled petals.

Wonder also sets in at the magic of growth. The adolescent lemon tree just planted has already surged a few lemons-in-training.

To stay with the cutting takes patience. My mind moves. It wants me to attend to the glass globes that need water.  Just to vary the tedium's rhythm.

Do I follow the thought and break away from the daisies?  Of course.

Filling the glass bulbs that provide water to my plants also requires the patience and a crouched position that agitates muscles. I used to fill them individually with the garden hose. Drip. Drop. Dull.

Purchasing more bulbs to care for my plants, I shared concerns with a store manager. He advised me to take a large bucket and submerge the globes which would cause them to fill easily.  Two or three could fill at a time.

As I start his physics experiment, my mind develops strategies. With gardening gloves to avoid cuts from an accidental breakage, I push three bulbs under water, wedging one with the other hand.

I love to watch and listen to the bubbles until they stop to the bulb has filled.

Creative thinking kicks in and I wonder how to develop ledges, interspersed in the bucket, to support more bulbs. It would appear like myriad hands of a clock.



A crate in the bottom could stand bulbs upright. Fill five at a time?

A young avocado leaf sends me a heart for my efforts.  Is it advising that the laughing frog provides too much water?  Or is that Mickey Mouse?

Happiness is … the grace of being permitted to unfold … all the spiritual powers planted within us.”  - Franz Werfel