Chores

"Before enlightenment, chop wood and carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood and carry water."--Zen Buddhist saying.

Chores like giving the orchard a trim and cleaning up underneath it may seem mundane, even tedious...which is why they are also meditative.

Abundance seems to be fueled by hard work on basic tasks. Garden hygiene and spiritual hygiene both involve giving a lot of tender, loving care and an equal amount of raking, pruning, and focused, critical attention. You have to discern what to cut, and what to strengthen and nurture.

Overcrowding layers of leaves and spent fruit wands drain the tree of its energy, inviting disease. I disturbed quite a few fruit-sucking insects today when I cleaned this tree up! Now the long strands of remaining fruit in the leftmost bough, for example, can get enough sun and air.

Even bowers of flowers require labor for hours and hours.
Here is my row of roses who need dead-heading.

Prioritizing my chore list is challenging for me. I believe all of the living things and objects have "devas" or kind of a nature spirit with its own personality, so to speak. The Greeks called it "Teleos", the creature's own ends. Creatures having their own ends, which I as their steward, must act in harmony with.

Sometimes the clamoring Devas from all the people, plants, animals, tools, and possessions becomes quite the cacaphony for me, and I need to just feel into myself to see which one is most urgent.

Tender baby chickens always win. Adorable babies always get first priority of Creating Care. So another part of Zen and the art of homestead maintainance is to simply sit and watch over them while they are out foraging.

Hope you enjoyed my musings on doing chores. I certainly enjoyed procrastinating on doing the dishes chore while writing this for you! ;)

May your wood chopping and water carrying bring you a sweet sense of accomplishment.

In Metta,
Love,Cat