I've been digging a lot, these last few days, as my work has been quite physical of late. I enjoy it.Being outdoors, in the elements. Especially now as summer has ended and Autumn is finally here. It's still warm, but not unbearably so and with a lovely freshness in the morning and at night. I do love this time of year. This change, that blows in from the mountains and soothes one's soul.
The summers can be tough here sometimes. Often they feel relentless, we all know it will end, but there becomes a point, where you just want to be able to get on with things during the day and not have to come to stand still for a big chunk of it. I like to move, if I become too stagnant, then I get too wrapped up in my thoughts and then I waste my time. Being active, is such a huge part of my well being.
But also, it's knowing when to rest, when to pause for a moment. I've been getting better at that, but now that me and my girls will be traveling to Ireland next month for two weeks ( woohoo finally a holiday), I need to work as much as I can, as I need money to spend when we go there and also for when we return. So I've been taking any work that comes my way. Which is now, catching up with me.
But the outdoor physical work, that feels right, it's good to be digging, to be using my body more. Yesterday, I was a clearing out an area, that is going to be used, to create a herb garden. It used to be a pond, but got filled in. There was a very stubborn bush to dig up, it always struggled there, the leaves all had turned brown. But the roots, damn those roots were held fast.
It didn't feel right to pull them, when they were holding so tightly. Some of the roots were growing into the wall. At one point, I had sat on the ground with my feet on the wall, as I tried to pull one section of the shrub's roots out. The roots were so matted, that they was no way I could have transplanted it somewhere else on the land.
I did however, get to dig up and transplant an Avocado Tree. It was also struggling in that spot. The pool was lined with concrete, so the roots of the avocado tree, were all growing sideways,. I loosened the soil, then I carefully removed the soil from the main tap roots. Then I replanted it, in a very wide hole and helped it settle in, by giving it some water.
But wow, my body feels it. My shoulders are sore and I can feel most muscles in my back. But it still feels good, knowing I'm using the muscles in my body. It's a great workout. I'm not one for gyms, I'm not even good at doing stretches or anything like that. I'm happy living a life, that has me using my body, the way it is meant to be used.
As I writing this, I had to stop for a few moments, so that I could take a thorn out of my hand. As today I was pruning a lemon tree and they seem to have thorns in random places. I know, I should wear gloves, my poor hands are a bit battered, but I rarely do wear them. I tend to just get stuck in. What I need is a utility belt, which have gloves inside them. Hmm I should make one. Just have to find the time. Then get myself some well fitting gloves.
We tend to store emotions in our bodies, emotions we tucked away instead of dealing them. Mostly when they are too uncomfortable or painful. But when we push them aside, they tend to fester and then manifest as pain or dis ease in our bodies. Being physical, helps us to release some of them, finally softening our bodies, so that we can actually begin to let them go. It's all connected, our physical and emotional self. That's why being active, is so important for our mental health. When we move, everything moves within too,
(All photos used in my post are mine.)
