One Garden Tip
Leave your parsnips in the ground after the first frost — it makes them sweeter. Just like hardship changes us, the cold changes them in ways you can taste.
2 Reflections
1. Slowness Is Sacred
Parenting has made me slow down. In the garden, I used to have a mission-like focus to get things done. Now I stop and show Lily Melody simple things like how to smell the basil. She cups the leaves in her hands like they are a treasure and takes a good sniff. This experience of learning from Lily Melody, of seeing her joy in the simple things, has taught me that slowing down is not just essential, it is sacred.
2. A Book That Feels Like Home
I have read Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff by Richard Carlson more than ten times. It is a book that has helped me relax and not take myself so seriously. To learn to be less bothered and be more comfortable with life. This book, like a tree, reminds me that I am still growing.
One Insight from the Whenua
“Ko au te whenua, ko te whenua ko au.”
“I am the land, the land is me.
For Māori, this connection to the land is not just a philosophical concept or poetry, but a deeply rooted truth that binds us to our environment. It is as true as the bond between a mother and child.
My garden is home to a multitude of interrelationships that enrich the soil, enabling plants to thrive. These plants become me. As kaitiaki (guardian), my responsibility is to protect and nourish soil-life. Because caring for the soil is to love myself and my whanau today, and preserve its integrity for seasons to come.
Thanks for stopping by, until next week…
Arohanui,
Adrian
In my One-2-One Weekly newsletter, I share one garden tip, 2 heartfelt reflections, and one insight from the whenua. Enter your email to receive it in your inbox.