Landscape Is a Metaphor

When planning a landscape design, we must consider our predominant weather conditions such as amount of sunlight, source of water, soil conditions, exposure to wind, and of course, existing plants and living creatures in our natural environment.

In one of this week's episodes, my guest, a professional landscape designer spoke to these factors that make for an integral part of a well-balanced ecosystem.

Nature is a great teacher and there are so many life lessons that we can reap by spending time out in the world of nature. As a student of human nature, and not a botanist, and to hold true to the platform of my blog, in this article I will share thoughts on protecting and nurturing ourselves which is likened to what a beautiful landscape needs to flourish. The natural environment can be defined as anything that encompasses our surroundings from all angles, whether living things or nonliving , never artificial things, and an actual landscape is subject to these elements. Metaphorically, when you set your goals, you are the landscape, you are your own ecosystem so to speak, therefore, you must take inventory of your natural and acquired abilities , and take to heart the social context of our environment and not to mention the circumstances we personally  find ourselves in.

My guest indicated, to plan for a landscape design it is essential to have  some forethought and create a vision  for it, you do not just grab whatever plants and trees at a nursery and plant them willy-nilly, and hope for the best. Instead, you must give serious thought to what type of outdoor space you desire, the purpose you want it to serve, what you want to plant and how you want your landscape to be designed for optimum eye appeal. Similarly, you should have foresight or a vision on how you want your life to look like for optimum enjoyment. Therefore, questions such as what kind of life do you desire to have? What is  your life’s mission? What do you want to attain, achieve, and experience? Unfortunately, many do not like their literal landscape, they do not care for how it is laid out, its overgrown,  there is imbalance no appeal to the eye and no attractive brilliant color whatsoever. However, there may be one or two plants that you enjoy, but my point is, it does not complete what you want, enjoyment  is extremely limited, but it does not have to be this way,  imagine the enjoyment it could bring if you included your entire landscape to be to your liking. So, what do you do?

We must Prioritize by analyzing what is of utmost importance to us. As for your yard environment, do you prefer a vegetable garden? Do you want a Japanese garden, tropical  or a desert scenery? It is a wish list of things you want to plant, however, be practical by understanding your yard has limited space, we cannot plant everything we want, much like having limited time, resources, and abilities. This underscores the fact that we must prioritize, otherwise, our life becomes overwhelming, too cluttered, and we become an emotional mess and the result, we do not achieve what we want. Reasonableness must come into play, after all, you cannot start a new business, learn to be a professional pianist,   train for the Olympics, and author an award-winning book all at the same time. If you can, I stand corrected!

Goals are very much like annuals, they have an ephemeral life span that completes their life cycle, from germination to the point of producing seed within one year, and then dies, however, it produced the fruit that was most important to you. Then, the following year you can begin a new endeavor or goal and bear the fruit of your hard labor and so on.

However, you need healthy and fertile soil for a vibrant landscape to thrive ecologically. A landscaper invests lots of time and energy to improve the soil to create a strong, rich and a long-lasting foundation for optimal growth. They ad compost which is a mixture of ingredients used as plant fertilizer to ameliorate the soil's physical structure, chemicals like phosphorus, carbon, nitrogen, creating an edaphon which is a collective term that encompasses all organisms within a soil profile.

In the same manner , it is necessary to build a solid foundation for your goal. How do you achieve this? By obtaining the right field of knowledge that you need to develop the needed skills, thus, allowing you to reach your goals.

When you make your soil rich, when you have laid a solid foundation for your goals you can exponentially improve its production. your foundation is a synergism of  getting your financial house in order, creating a budget that makes sense, getting rid of creditors, and starting a nest egg in case of unexpected incidentals, and these are an aggregate of the elements that foster freedom for personal growth.

Additionally, creating solid habits, striving to optimal physical health by way of exercise, a healthier culinary  habit, getting enough slumber, and ruminating on the things you are grateful for is part of the soil of your heart.

It has been said that You Reap What You Sow. When a farmer wants tomatoes, he will plant tomato seeds. Should the farmer plant hemlock seeds and later scratch his head with wonderment  why there is not a delicious watermelon to enjoy, obviously, you always  reap what you sow.

This explains why so many people look at their lives, they are dissatisfied with what they see, and they wonder what went wrong. The point is, they planted the wrong seed of overeating that compromises their health, the marital relationship is up against the ropes, they are in debt with no end in sight, and waiting for the proverbial "my ship to come in," but they find themselves waiting at the airport. As mentioned at the outset, plants require different environments that dictates whether it will  flourish, therefore, you must acknowledge  your inner strengths, take inventory of yourself by understanding  your weaknesses, your likes and dislikes, your personality, those you associate with,  and this will determine your ultimate success.

Is it not true many landscapes and gardens have fences to keep out unwanted creatures that may destroy your hard work? In much the same way, you should build a fence to protect your emotional health and goals, in other words, you must have well defined boundaries. Unfortunately, there are people that will emphatically tell you that you cannot do it, and we must keep these people at a safe distance, otherwise, they become a source of toxic discouragement to what we want to accomplish. We also must learn to kindly say “no” to commitments that are detrimental to what is of utmost importance to us and family. Always be available to work on your objectives and kindly decline anything that will  interrupt or distract you from the task at hand. However, there are always exceptions to the rule, and I will leave that to your discretion.

Once you have put in place your landscape you wanted, there is yet lots of ongoing work to maintain your outdoor space looking beautiful, it is a continuum of conservation. So, you must engage in pulling weeds, pruning, the right amount of water, and continued adding nutrients to the soil. Just as a yard requires assiduous maintenance, likewise  your goals and aspirations  need constant attention. Make certain to take actional steps necessary to achieve your objectives on an ongoing basis. There is no substitute for being consistent, and in doing so, you will eventually bear the desired fruit from your hard work.

The attribute of patience is a virtue that needs to be cultivated to Trust the Process of seeing things grow. Will your plants grow any faster if you pull on them?

At the end of the day and after your maximum effort, you will  create the top possible conditions in your landscape, planting the right seeds that are supported by your environment, and by providing those seeds the care and attention they need you can trust that nature will do the rest.

When it comes to our endeavors, we also must be patient; you cannot force things to happen, but you must have confidence in the process. Not to bring attention to myself, but I can only relate from my own personal experience and observation. When I think of this podcast show I started in July of 2020, I will admit, it was not the easiest thing I ever done. Now, I am in my fourth year, and it has grown exponentially with guests requesting to be on the show from all over the world. My point is, if you are consistent, others will be consistent with you!

Of course, landscapers fully understand that there are slight setbacks along the way like the climate, pests, disease issues and so on that are out of our control. But they deal with it and learn from it, I call it life.

Allow me to ask you, what if all we got was sunshine throughout the year? You would have a veritable desert! So, expect to have an occasional rain on our endeavors, of course we do not welcome them, but there is always something to learn and master, and after all, it does foster good character. We will always run into unexpected obstacles and unforeseen setbacks, that’s just the way life is, it is a variable event. Be flexible, be adaptable and never let anything keep you from progressing to your plethora of finish lines. Rest assured, after all your struggles and toiling, your outdoor spaces should start looking like you first visualized  it, and similarly, your life's  plan will look like how you envisioned it as well.

You will love what you are doing, you will have financial stability, wonderful relationships, memorable experiences, and hands down, no regrets. When a landscaper tills the soil, he does not just turn it over in his mind, he does it!