Nature has always been the primary metaphor in Chinese Medicine (no, I don’t really consider “lawns” as “nature”, but bear with me, it’s the most relatable metaphor I could come up with!). We talk about the relationships between the seasons, the elements, the organs, the emotions. And, even for me, it becomes a sort of symbolic representation, when the truth is it is not. It IS the relationship. The connections between us and the planet are not metaphors, they are a reality. We are a seed in the garden. We are one the of cells in the body of Earth. We are not separate, we are not disconnected, we are not apart from. How we care for ourselves and how we care for our planet, and all the micro and macro aspects of this - they matter and they make a difference.
When we moved to our little home with a lovely stretch of front yard our lawn was probably average. Our neighbours’ lawn, however, was exceptional. One of those “golf green” lawns, with strategic mowing patterns and watering and regular fertilizing schedules. I had myself and my push mower and my inclination to view lawns as damaging water wasting monocultures. But when the dandelions started moving in en mass I decided to “tackle them”, not wanting it to get too out of control. I got one of those digging tools. The root would always break off. I got one of those fancy water pressure tools for the hose, from Lee Valley. The ground was too hard. I tried vinegar, blue Dawn dish soap, maybe salt?! I tried plucking off the heads before they’d go to seed (apparently that just makes them more aggressive!). I let great patches of clover invade whole areas of the lawn, and mowed around these beautiful bee-buzzing islands. But somehow I couldn’t embrace the dandelions, with their hard pink stalks that would just bend to the mower and pop back up all over, ready to stab you in the sole. Meanwhile, the neighbours next door continued to have a golf green lawn, untainted by pink stalks or pops of yellow or puffs of white.
So here’s what I learned.
Dandelions are a very hardy, pervasive, aggressive weed. They move in to areas of imbalance and disrepair. They can take root virtually anywhere, and overcome great obstacles to grow and thrive. My strategies of tackling them were not working. Short of putting a bubble of isolation over the lawn, I saw I had two options. I could embrace them for the resilient spirits that they are - bright and beautiful and even nutritious in their own way. This is an option with dandelions. Or I could take care of my own lawn better, and create an ecosystem that was strong and healthy and more resilient than the invaders.
This is a really, really important time to take care of our lawns. By which I mean, if you haven’t gotten there yet - our bodies (also our minds, our spirits, our relationships and so on, but right now, our bodies are quite clearly the things at most imminent risk). And by “this time”, I mean now. And luckily, when it comes to our Real Health (as opposed to our lawn’s health) we do not have to choose either / or. Practicing isolation is GREAT. Keeping our heads down is ESSENTIAL. And working on our underlying health concerns, bringing our bodies to balance, optimizing our strength and resilience - this is also possible and advisable at this time.
There is no treatment, cure or prevention for the Coronavirus. In Chinese Medicine we do not treat diseases, as defined by the Western Medical model. We treat people, and work to assist you in realizing your optimal health so that you can maintain that health to your absolute best ability. In the face of whatever you encounter.
