A Full Plate, An Empty Garden & Another Post About Finding Balance

I will not be tending a backyard vegetable garden this year.

Shocking, I know.

I live in the South, my house sits on an acre and a half, and I already have the boxes built from last year’s failed garden attempt. Really, there’s no reason I shouldn’t have seeds in the ground already.

Except I don’t want to.

The more people asked me if I had my garden in yet, the more I realized I don’t enjoy gardening.  The past few years I’ve planted, and failed at, vegetable gardens. I realize now I was doing it out of a self-imposed sense of obligation.

I don’t enjoy fighting the bugs, the heat, the drought, the weeds. Getting dirt under my nails is not therapeutic to me.

To some of you this may seem like no big deal and not worthy of a blog post. To those of you not getting it, let me remind you — I live in the south.

A vegetable garden is kind of a law down here.

Between the kids, teaching yoga, writing and building a business my spare time is very limited. More than a few people have told me lately I’m too busy and taking on too much.

They are right. I know that. And I really am making attempts to restructure my life for more balance and less stress.

I mean, really, isn’t that what I teach in my yoga classes?

Yoga is about finding the edge between pushing yourself and backing off when the pose is too much. I remind my classes that flowing through multiple rounds of Surya Namaskara (sun salutations) can be fun and invigorating. But sometimes what our body really needs is to stop and rest in Balasana (Child’s pose).

Balance, baby, balance.

I need to be mindful of where my attention is given. I need to be sure that my energy is given to only those things that bring me joy or benefit my family.

Yes I realize that not having a garden puts me at a real disadvantage should the apocalypse hit. But I’m pretty sure it’s going to take more than a pantry of canned green beans to fight roving bands of zombies.

And yes, I’m aware the price of food is getting higher each day as oil prices continue to rise.  I’ll be more intentional this year in getting to our local farmer’s market to find locally grown produce.

And I won’t mind at all that there is a little more open space in the yard this year. More room for the kids and dogs to run!
 

Jennifer Williams-Fields E-RYT, is passionate about writing, yoga, traveling, public speaking and being a fabulous single momma to six super kids. Doing it all at one time, however, is her great struggle. She has been teaching yoga since 2005 and writing since she first picked up a crayon. Although her life is a sort of organized chaos, she loves every minute of the craziness and is grateful for all she’s learned along the way. She is the author of “Creating a Joyful Life: The Lessons I Learned from Yoga and My Mom” now available on Amazon. She co-wrote “Transform Your Life From F’d up To Fabulous” and is featured in other yoga collaboratives. She also is a regular writer for Elephant Journal Magazine, YourTango and YogaUOnline. Follow Jennifer on Twitter @yogalifeway, Instagram @JNELF6 and read her blog.