Support System

“The Earth does not belong to us: we belong to the Earth.”

Chief Seattle

We often think of life support as a last-ditch effort to keep someone alive, but isn’t life support happening every day all around us? From the smallest microorganism to the largest animal on Earth, we all depend on others to support our own lives. Without help from others, we, all of us, would simply cease to exist. It is literally impossible for us to survive alone yet many of us think this is our path on this Planet. We push others away, convince ourselves to go it alone because we know no one understands what we’re going through, no one can do it as well as we can, no one has ever been in this position before. What will people think if I ask for help? I’m better by myself. I’ve said these things. I’ve had these destructive thoughts. Luckily I found my way out of the dark and much of it has to do with my garden. Watching life fight to survive despite the harshness the world throws at it. It’s amazing how much plant life and human life need the same basic structure to survive. I believe we are born from the same creator, whatever that means to you is not for debate here, just the understanding that we are in this together. As humans, we have a few basic needs. Shelter. Food. Water. Air. That’s it. These are our basic needs to survive, but I would add one to this list, support. Support is a key ingredient to the recipe of life on Earth in my opinion. We cannot survive without the support of others because we are dependent on others to aid in planetary health. Mother Nature exists to sustain life on Earth and she depends on all creatures, big and small, to ensure this life continues. When an eco-system is disrupted, life is also disrupted. But it finds a way to survive if left to its own devices. Think about a forest fire that wipes out everything in it’s path. Systems are leveled. Life is depleted. It looks as if the land has been wiped of any type of existence whatsoever. Yet what is always said? Life rose from the ashes. How is it possible? Because of the support system that lies underground, just waiting to spring to action when called upon. I believe Nature is where chaos and harmony collide to create beautiful life. The plants that come back are stronger. The ones that survive teach the others and pass down their genes to offspring that are more resilient and more adapted to the harshness. That’s why we save seeds of our strongest plants, so those traits can be used to grow the next generation. That has always confused me when people talk about “hunting”. Why take out the biggest and strongest of the species if the idea is to allow that animal to thrive and create the best of the best to ensure their kind survive in the long run? Wouldn’t you want to take out the weakest of the group like nature does in the wild? But I guess you wouldn’t want to hang the head of a weak trophy on your wall. Who would be impressed by that?

Mother Nature performs her miracles every day without asking for a vacation, without a sick day, without any complaining at all. All so life can sustain itself on the one planet we know for sure can support life. Do I believe there are other planets and solar systems out there that can sustain life? Of course I do! The Universe is infinite and we would be very closed-minded if we didn’t think other life can exist out there among the stars. So why are we here then? I have no idea and this is a blog about gardening so let’s get back on track! Speaking of the garden, there isn’t a day that goes by that I am not amazed by the life in this world and what is possible. Jess and I laugh all the time about how these Sci-Fi movies depict far away planets and how crazy some of the ideas they come up with seem compared to our lives here on Earth, but when you really step back and think about what happens here, how are you not in amazement every second of every day!? As an example, my nephew just broke his wrist playing football, so the doctor sets the bone back in place, wraps it up in a hard cast so it doesn’t move too much in order for what exactly? So the body can allow the bone grow back together on its own! I mean seriously, think about that! The bone is going to literally grow back together!! If we cut ourselves, the skin will magically heal itself, typically without any outside help. This is some voodoo magic and we take it for granted, we expect it to happen as if it’s just a normal occurrence yet we’re in amazement when we see an “alien” heal itself on the big screen. Have you seen a gecko change colors in front of your eyes to blend in to her surroundings? I see it almost every day in the garden. She will change colors in front of my eyes! In real time! Brown? Nope! I want to be green now so let’s be green! What the even heck? That is X-Men kind of crazy cool stuff! And we just think of it as no big deal. Then there are these fish that swim in the water, breathing underwater like “normal”, then they decide one day, nah I think today I’ll walk on land and breathe air. So their front flippers become “feet” and they starting walking on land and breathing air. Just like that. Totally normal. Oh yeah, and how about the power of an acorn? The tiny little annoying “nut” that is ALL over the ground right now in North Texas crunching under everyone’s feet and tires. Think about what this guy can accomplish in it’s life. Under the right conditions, with the proper support, this tiny seed can grow up to become an entire forest. It may take a little time and patience, but what else does a forest have besides time and patience? And thanks to the creatures of the forest, the time needed to expand is actually aided & diminished by the spreading of the seeds through mammals such as squirrels, foxes, deer, raccoons, etc. eating these acorns and spreading the tiny seeds that are wrapped in that hard outer shell in every direction. Fertilizing the ground by depositing their excrement on the forest floor, digging and burying nuts which then become trees of their own, aerating the soil by their feet & hooves, allowing the cycle of life & death to feed the soil which then feeds the fungal life under the forest floor which then creates a network to support all plant life in the forest. Without the support of all the creatures, big and small, life would simply not exist. And what do we do in our gardens? We try to mimic this cycle as much as possible. Sure there are new methods of growing such as hydroponics, aeroponics, aquaponics, etc. that are soilless and absolutely have their place providing food for the ever expanding human race, but to grow in the soil means doing whatever we can to mimic what is done inherently by nature. We add chemicals and fertilizers to address deficiencies in the soil or deal with pests because we have stripped the Earth of her defense mechanisms and must now artificially support the life we are trying to create. There’s an old Shenandoah song that I love called “Mama Knows” and it has so many meanings to me. Of course in this instance, it simply means Mother Earth knows what she is doing when we get out of the way. She does not need us to “correct” anything because it is all here for a reason. We may not understand why the hated mosquito exists in the first place, but she does. They are a food source for other creatures, which provide some other service to her. For example, bats LOVE mosquitos! I wish I could have pet bats at the house. They would be my favorite pet of all time. I would take them on a fly around the neighborhood, walking would take too long of course. All of my neighbors would be jealous because we would be mosquito free all year long, plus I could go as Batman every year on Halloween and just wear my regular clothes. Hmm, this is actually starting to be a pretty good idea. Bat houses are pretty easy to make and hang in a tree…. Hopefully Jess doesn’t read this entry! My point is that we all dislike mosquitos and most of us are scared of bats, but they exist for a reason and they are here to support something else. Something bigger than themselves and they don’t even know it. I think we all can learn a little something from the lessons that Nature teaches every day. Just be there for others. Support each other and the Planet. Every one, and every life, needs a little help now and then, why not do the job we were put here for? Without expecting anything in return. Reciprocity will come in time. Maybe not today. Maybe not next week. But Mama Knows and she will take care of you. Take care of her. She’s the only one we’ve got and she’s in trouble.