“Stir the darkness around you;
and bring forth the light - e ala e!”
It’s a comfortable 81 degrees F under the shade of our spreading plum tree. Bright pink single petal peonies with cheery yellow anthers have popped underneath our small tart cherry tree. Deep purple clematis with cream colored anthers are starting to climb the trellis on the sides of the walls. My favorite month has begun!
What a treat it is to sit outside…strong breezes are dancing through the great trees in the distance. The wind energizes everything. And there are casualties. Many oblong baby green plums litter the ground; they couldn’t hang on in the bustling wind. Ahhh, another summer without luscious fruit to eat from our own tree.
Large flat stones line the ground with moss (and weed) filled crevices in between. If I look at the crevice, I feel the weeds magnetizing my attention. “Pull me,” they say, “pull me.” I listen to their call and imagine that it’s the back of a giant tortoise that I’m cleaning. There are also tiny plants that also fill the crevices - like the tiny green leaf creeping thyme that smells minty when you gently crush it between your fingers.
The birds that gather around the garden mesmerize me. Two black starlings sit on the telephone wire high above the parking pad just outside the garden. They utter an occasional squawk when they fly to change positions. Brown sparrows chirp hidden in the dense green leaves of the plum tree.
I look up at the cloudy sky and see a few swallows soaring and twittering as they catch bugs. Swallows are the dive bombers of the bird world. They are so fast! The subtlest change of their wings create flight patterns that glide and frolic through the air.
Handsome robin redbreast has flown onto one of the raised beds, looking for worms. He pecks through the dark watered soil in hopes of finding a juicy one. He finds no worms but definitely unearths goodies for his meal.
It’s these little moments that make me happy. They fortify me as I practice not knowing and bear witness to darkness swirling. When I deeply practice not knowing and bearing witness, light always comes forth. I’m grateful to be alive in my 72nd year on the planet and able to keep practicing Hula and Zen. They nourish me as does our backyard garden.
What is it that you find nourishing?
Malama pono (take good care of body, mind and hea),
June Kaililani Ryushin Tanoue
Kumu Hula, Sensei