It is heartening to see a surge in climate change activism at the moment with 350.org doing a great job in raising popular awareness. I find the message sometimes, (well maybe often,) overwhelming as well. Being out in my garden, just noticing what's going on, calms the mind. I have observed this effect on myself for many years - a swim in the ocean, a country weekend, alfresco dinning! Of course there is now a name and academic analysis of it - ecopsychology , a relatively new branch of psychotherapy.These moments are refreshing because they reconnect us with our true nature, too much of our contemporary lives have become an abstraction. Ecopsychologists argue that the ecological mess we find ourselves in, is directly the result of our efforts to ignore and repress all that is natural (and uncertain, mysterious,uncontrollable and real).
So to the garden -
Even the most neglected garden can be therapeutic. This week I looked beyond the weeds and dead dry lawn and saw that my paw paw had ripened and a respectable amount of cherry tomatoes were ready. The rocket went to seed over the holidays. I managed to save them (the seeds) using new skills gained from the OOOBY workshop. Not a bad effort I thought to myself, considering this time last year I was, (a complete novice), just starting my horticulture cert at Northy Street. If I applied myself to 350 such practical actions, (1 per day and 14 days reserved for inaction or impractical actions,)why that would be a year of good mental health plus as much paw paw and tomato as anyone could eat!
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