It’s a long journey from seed to fruit and there is much in it to rejoice about. There is another part to the growth cycle. It is the journey from re-seeding, to release and dormancy. It, too, is a sacred journey, but is not considered or celebrated enough in our culture. Now that there are many more senior citizens this part of the life cycle may become more valued. Elders can pass on all manner of love, wisdom, humor, wildness and respect for life and its difficulties. They can be full of beans.
I have heard countless people speak of how important a grandparent; a loving senior teacher or friend has been to them. An elder has much to quietly give, more than can be realized. Perhaps we can say that differently from youth they feed the future. It is a sacred task.
Phrases posted on Facebook, July 2015
As you may know my garden book, Embracing the Seasons, has just come out. In my garden now the pole beans are beginning to reach for the trellis. Not long ago I was holding a little dry bean in its white casing in my hand. I could feel how full of potential it was, the same as we are. Most of us arrive in this life packed with life force and possibility. Developing that energy is an invitation to be an undivided, vibrant self. “Full of Beans” is my subject for July.
In this little bean I am holding is a hidden mission that when given the right circumstances it can emerge, grow, blossom, provide nourishment and continued life. Seeds are a deep metaphor in the human psyche. Whether actual or metaphysical they deserve our awe and respect for are we not meant to be planted and rooted into earth also? Having the same mission, as any seed aren’t we, too, deserving of awe and respect? Those qualities will make us capable and “full of beans”.
When we are little we are planted in a family and circumstances we don’t have much choice about. But when we are mature enough to choose what is truly earthy and nourishing for us, we need to remember that such choices are sacred. We make them not just for our individual selves but also for life itself. That gives them fullness and power.
When it is planting time I put the little bean seed one half inch into the rich darkness of the soil. For us humans the unknown is often felt as darkness. So whenever we are quiet, in solitude, in prayer or meditation we plant ourselves in the rich soil of the unknown. We wait. We do not know what will be. If we are able to wait gently without an agenda we may touch something of our true nature. In that stillness the mystery of inner growth and germination takes place.
In the dark embrace of the soil and with time taking its course, a small taproot emerges from the bean seed. The casing breaks and the bean’s life force pushes into deeper ground. The same process happens to us metaphysically speaking. When we are able to spend time in the unknown, in enriched quietude our usual conditioning (our casing) can break open and the life force then takes us deeper. We are taken into greater fullness.
When we plant a seed we cannot at first see that growth is happening in three directions.
From the taproot ancillary roots emerge that go down as well as out horizontally and a tiny stem is pushing upwards. In our continued practice of quietude and attention we, too, are growing in three directions. There is a wordless sense that something is stabilizing within the depth of our being. We can’t really say what it is. Just that it is. This movement may feel small to us, but it is a large, powerful life-giving force.
The mystery of inner growth is so wonder full. When the stem of the bean seed emerges out of the darkness of the soil, it appears to me to be curled as if a little head were bending toward the ground in prayer. To me there is a sense of humility and dynamism present. Whenever our true natures emerge into daylight, into the every day, the feeling for many is a combination of humility and energy. Bowing to the past in gratitude for what was, we unfold into newness.
Since it is a pole bean we are following we can see that as the plant begins to mature it sends out tendrils that reach for something to cling to. We do the same. As children we cling to our parents, to familiar routines, to teachers and friends. Hopefully they are good things that support us. It is the way we learn and grow. To know we are all inter-dependent is to know that any gain anyone makes has is thanks to “inter-being” as Thich Nhat Hanh puts it. We never get to be full of beans without others.
The young pole bean plants are reaching up, reaching up. They are beginning to set little white flowers. Something in us reaches up, reaches up from deep inner soil and wants to blossom and bear fruit. To align with that intrinsic longing and allow it to blossom in our lives is the deep privilege of being human. Nothing makes us happier in the end.
Now the beans in the garden are coming fast and furiously. Time to eat and share them. They’re young and delicious. In life when we are in seasons of generative production it’s time to go full out, to rejoice and be grateful that things we have nurtured a long time have come to fruition. It’s a time of happy fullness not to be skipped over by future worrying or old regret. To rejoice is the thing!
The beans that I have not picked are growing fatter and longer and are beginning to set seeds. I can see little lumps forming inside their bean bodies. When we mature doesn’t it somehow happen that particular gifts mature inside us, too? Our essence is setting seeds.
Perhaps we can sense that we are pregnant with life.
The larger bean pods are beginning to turn a little drier and a little tougher. Sometimes we have to be a “no nonsense” drier and a “no nonsense” tougher to get things done on a level that isn’t easily seen by others. We can’t explain it. We just have to shield what is growing inside—no questions asked.
As we allow fruition in our lives we need more room, more spaciousness in our thinking. Old habits of limitation need to be released. We are exploring what it means to be all that we can be. Being full of beans we can own what we are and have. No artificial modesty. No cover-up for things we do not like about our selves. No yes butting. A Biblical saying is direct about abundance: “To them that have more shall be given”. We need to be willing to grow into and have our abundance
We need a long growing season for potential to move into manifestation. If we push and hurry we actually delay what is organic. To allow and delight in every small development is a better way to grow.
Soon the bean vines will be picked clean. I can see the intricate web of stems and leaves weave and lace through the support that holds them. If any fruiting has happened in us and for us we have had intricate patterns of support. Fruiting is always in some way communal and so a matter of gratitude and grace.
