August 2024
Inspiration, Encouragement, Hope
Your Potential When You Partner With Nature
When folks share their stories of success with Soil-less Gardens, we get excited and it gives us hope. You remind us that we are not the only ones who understand the power of working with nature in our daily lives, our projects, our goals beyond the garden environment.
So when we read and learn about the political movement to stop and reverse the mitigating actions our government has taken to address climate change, and even remove the words "climate change" from U.S. government research, reports and public documents . . . Well, after we stop our heads from exploding, we think about how a partnership with nature changes the playing field and puts the power to change in our hands.
We think about how it's truly up to each of us individually to take action and address climate change in our own lives. We must use the power we have and start from the place we are to make changes in our life and in our work.
That can feel oh so daunting sometimes. But we don't have to do this alone. We have nature. And nature is right in front of us, ready to help. All we have to do is ask.
This is our superpower, this is your superpower — the knowledge and ability to work with nature in our lives to create positive change and come up with balanced solutions starting today, from the place we are standing right now.
What's that one problem you need to solve?
You can work with nature to solve it.
That is Soil-less Gardening.
Now is a great time view (or review) this short excerpt.
Watch, listen and "get it" as Machaelle explains soil-less gardening in a ten-minute excerpt from her workshop, Working with Nature in Soil-less Gardens.
(Click the play button to watch the excerpt.)
If you are fully motivated and ready to get started — All that you absolutely must have in order to work with nature is your desire to do that and any well defined goal. You can begin with just a few simple steps.
When you have a goal to achieve or a problem to solve that you care deeply about and you are going to put time into, take your work with nature to the next level and establish a Soil-less Garden Team.
The materials developed by Machaelle Wright and nature are available to help all of us partner with nature through a simple structure established by nature. Machaelle did the research and work to give everyone the tools that nature wants us to use for this partnership.
Inspiration Is All Around You
What are others doing in their personal lives to solve the problems they care about? Below are some great stories to come back to when you're "having a day" and could use an infusion of hope for humanity!
We recently read an article about a "citizen scientist" who solved a problem that hit and hurt him deeply. As we often do when reading a story like this, we thought, "What a perfect project this would have been to work out with nature!" What would have happened if this determined, thoughtful man knew about Co-Creative Science?
Did this citizen scientist develop the perfect, chemical-free lawn?
By Lina Zeldovich, The Washington Post, July 6, 2024
Jackson Madnick developed a grass seed mix that can thrive without chemicals and with minimal watering. We applaud his accomplishments and his tenacity. And we hope that his story gives you inspiration to tackle the problems that come your way — but not on your own. Invite nature to help you solve them.
And if this wonderful woman doesn't inspire you, it's possible nothing will. She explains in this video how she got started: "I set out wanting to be a nutrition educator and farming grew out of that. I didn't set out to be a farmer. I was just running into a lot of frustrations with my clients being able to afford healthy food options. And that's how my journey of growing food started. It was just putting a couple of plants on the roof and that's it."
How This Aquaponics Farmer Is Reinventing Urban Agriculture
PBS Terra's "Women of the Earth" Documentary Series on YouTube
She started by just putting a couple of plants on the roof! That's just what we want you to do. Maybe not literally. Your "couple of plants" could be the pieces of your project — the furniture in your office, the appliances in your kitchen, the clothing in your closet or the energy-saving device you are incorporating into your home. Or they could literally be plants on a rooftop (or porch or balcony)!
However and wherever you get started, we want you to have nature as your partner in your personal experiment, your personal problem-solving, goal-achieving team. That's the whole reason we're here.
There are kick-ass people all around the globe, each facing an environmental challenge unique to their lives, homes and work. They are coming up with solutions that are both practical and extraordinary.
PBS is running a fantastic series called Hope in the Water. Besides giving us some much needed hope for turning around some of the environmental issues we face, it shows many examples of how one person, asking one question, solving one problem connects them with others and can make a difference for our environment.
In the first episode of the series, Howard Wood says, "Humans have no option. If we are to survive on this planet and feed ourselves, we have to look after nature. We have to start getting that balance back."
We would add that not only do we have to look after nature, but we must look to nature. That's how we get balance.
How about allowing nature — the intelligence inherent in that nature — to join us in equal partnership to give us the input we need to make new decisions and live in new ways that have a strong, positive impact on our lives and our health, as well as the planet?
— Celebrating the Power of the Individual by Machaelle Wright
Where will you start?
Or what's the next step you'd like to take?
Don't underestimate your individual power. What's that one issue or challenge you want to solve? You know, that thing in your life that makes you say, "Something has to be done."
Start where you are with a problem or goal that you care about, something you want to solve or accomplish for yourself. Work with nature to find a solution to your problem that is in balance.
It doesn't have to start as a giant aspirational dream for world peace or to save the planet all on your own. It only has to be something that you care about and that you have a need and desire to solve.
Allow nature to help you find the answers, resolve the problems in a way that is in balance with the whole.
Learn how to set up and work with nature in a Soil-less Garden and then start tackling that vexing issue in front of you, not alone. You're going to tag-team that problem.
Establishing a Soil-less Gut Garden
In The Perelandra Garden Workbook, Machaelle tells you how to set up a Gut Garden and how to work with nature. It's the easiest partnership setup she offers.
Although the Workbook steps for Gut Gardening are set up for plants, you only need to take the Gut Gardening approach and principles and apply them to any aspect of your life. When your goal isn't to grow something in soil, then it's a soil-less garden. A soil-less gut garden.
Start with this simple approach. When gently weaving nature into the various aspects of daily life in an ongoing basis, Gut Gardening is the easier way to go.
1. Write down your goal. Make it clear and succinct. This is your DDP (definition, direction and purpose). For DDP examples, see this Perelandra Soil-less Garden Companion excerpt, pages 13–16.
2. Take your goal to nature. Sit down, focus your attention on nature and say, "Hello nature. I would like your help to _______________ (read the goal you wrote in step 1)."
3. Pay attention and act. In your daily life, pay attention to the ideas and thoughts that come your way. Nature will respond and communicate, offer suggestions and ideas in a myriad of ways. You just need to pay attention — and act on those options and ideas nature sends your way.
Be sure you follow your gut and any insights you are picking up. If a question pops into your head, hit the Start button* and ask your nature partner about it. Say it out loud. Be clear and straight-forward.
When you have questions, just ask the first one. Let the answer to that question lead you to the next question (if there is a next question).
Remember to thank your nature partner and hit the Stop button* when you complete your meeting.
* For setting up and using the Start and Stop buttons, see page 23 in The Perelandra Garden Workbook. (It's in the free excerpt here.)
You don't have to rule out growing a plant or two!
To learn Gut Gardening, you can put in a little 3-foot-square garden or start a couple of clay pots. This is your training ground. From there you can choose a simple aspect of your life and, using what you've learned, set it up as a Soil-less Gut Garden. Start asking questions, start making changes, start taking the needed steps that will lead you in the direction of balance in that area. When you see what this will give you, you'll want to apply your partnership to other areas of your life.
