Prose: Till the Earth
I once heard a story about the Earth. That anytime we chose to break apart her soil, to till the land, she felt the pain in her core. But like all mother’s, she was patient with her children, and endured the pain, and was happy to provide the nutrients beneath her land to cultivate what her children needed to grow. And countless times, her lands were tilled, and broken apart, and seeds were planted, and ever patient, she allowed herself to be upturned for the sake of the fruit to bare.
It is the same with all things for ourselves. To break apart the routines, the habits, the areas of our lives that have gone stagnant, and the aspects of ourselves that have become hardened, barren from complacency and neglect. Just as the soil, when left in a drought, when left in neglect, hardens against the elements, the effort of intervention to break apart the patterns is sizable but the yields are worth it. However, we can only see this growth if we are willing to endure the pain of tilling our own inner soil, so to speak.
In a time when complacency and stagnation is so common, we are unable to decipher that from the notion of comfort, we must make a conscious decision to break apart these norms. Upturn routine, till your inner narratives, look to care for the parts of yourself that have become so neglected, they are unaware they even exist. Take the time, to endure the pain of unresolved portions of your past, and see them through to the resolutions. It is part of tilling your Earth, cultivating change, for the sake of fruit to bare.
As it is in relationships as well. If you find yourself in place of complacency with a lover, a friend, whomever, perhaps it may be time to till the bounds of that relationship, break apart the aspects of silence and routine that strangle connection, and endure the hardship of exploring those areas that have grown barren in the neglect of silent times. Seek to find someone who is willing to endure this pain. Someone who will help you find the roots of your causes, your passions, and your pains, and will help you endure the tilling of the soil to bring about change in yourself. And it is the same for those who you hold dear in life. Let them know, you are there to hold their hand, sit next to them, hold them if you need to, but be at their side as they break apart their lands, and seek the changes that only fresh soil can bare.
Though, keep in mind this is not all there is. We must return to the Earth daily, care for her soil, care for the budding seeds that valiantly press up towards the sun. One doesn’t plant a seed and walk a way. Just as Mother Earth endures the pain, we must also endure the process of constantly striving to till the soil, break apart the complacency, have those hard conversations, not only with others, but with ourselves, and maintain this practice accordingly. Do not allow too much time to pass between your cultivations, as the dirt dries and hardens, so will your understanding. But, if we practice daily, the soil has no time to harden, and there will be no pain, only a healthy, well balanced source of growth and self.