Thursday October 9, 2014
As a social worker and mental health counselor my mind is usually focused on the human condition, not the world of plants. There is something perhaps metaphorical or analogous about seemingly endless life lessons that a garden provides or makes explicit for us. A garden strikes me as a potent ground zero for new beginnings or 'firsts.' For example today marked the first time for me as an official Edible Peace Patch volunteer. Additionally it was also my first time being in a position of teaching children. And ironically, the children I was teaching were first graders! It was also my first time teaching anyone about gardens, seeds, nature, much less teaching outdoors.
The children were excited, eager, and yes, energetic!! As I taught them the lesson plan "The Magic of Seeds" and what seeds need ( water, sunlight, nutrients, soil) and "The Potential of Seeds" (my own spin on this lesson) I could not help but notice the sparking energy of the many 'firsts' crackling around me. In simultaneous fashion there was the budding 'first' of a new fall season at Lakewood Elementary School Garden, the buzzing 'first' of intrepid schoolchildren embarking on the first year of what I hope will be a rich and rewarding relationship with learning and the bemusing 'first' cropping up in my own life as well. I can still experience new firsts in my life, even at age 50. How rejuvenating! We are never to old to learn and grow.
May the newness and regenerative powers of first times and new beginnings stay with us always. The garden shows us the way.
Laura Clarke
Oh my goodness! I wrote my first blog entry and figured out how to post a picture as well. Another first for me. Hooray!
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