Permaculture and Syntropic gardening as a way to discover subtle energy

I received my first permaculture books for my 21st birthday in the early 90's (big shout out to Bill Mollison RIP and Dave Holgrem for this!). I'd become interested in learning how to be a part of a clever, well integrated, self sustaining system that didn’t rely on big business, authoritative systems or require me to go to 'the shops' in order to be nourished, healthy and happy. I visited Bill's property and saw real beauty in a landscape where humans, plants and animals not only co-existed, but thrived together, because of each other - giving and taking care.

As a kid I lived as much as I was allowed to outdoors. I was always climbing trees, mowing, hacking privets, sweeping, repairing fences - without ever being asked to do so by my parents. Except weeding. I hated being made to weed. [Nowadays I realise why - even way back then I knew 'weeds' weren't really weeds. But that disclosure is for another time.] Making forts and plastic bottomed swim holes in our little bush section during summer was my idea of time well spent outside in perfect weather. Splitting wood for the pot belly stove in winter wasn't a chore, it was something I really enjoyed doing. I've always enjoyed the doingness of knowing how to do things and connecting as much as I can with nature.

That said, I didn't start sculpting my immediate landscape as an adult until I was in my own home without risk of landlord intervention deterring my head full of ideas. While syntropic, biodynamic gardening and oasis creation may appear to have come naturally to me (some of my earliest memories are of riding in a leaf filled wheelbarrow and crawling around in my dad's food garden bed in the back yard), in fact, it took decades to reach the point that I was completely at ease with single handedly altering my own landscape for the purpose of creating an aesthetically pleasing space whose purpose was to provide a healthful abundance of nutritional and medicinal plants.

It was decades later that I became confident enough to express my trust in the subtle messages I was continuously receiving from the natural world all around me. My mind is often busy seeing how things could be ‘improved’. I am enthralled with building and construction methods that fall outside the box of what was 'normal' to me as a kid just as much as I am with seeing a plant take off because I've listened to what it wants. To garner the wisdom of my plant brothers and sisters and put it to good use is (for me) a no brainer.

Who am I to tell a plant what’s best for it? Who am I to label god's creatures 'pests', 'noxious' or 'nasty' - these are human constructs that simply don't have any meaning in the non-human world. My views and practices regarding ‘environmental management’ are more often very different to those espoused by bureaucratic addicts and main stream greenies. Once you remember how to talk to them, the plant world offers a completely different perspective on how to live sustainably and joyfully in this realm.

Live and let live. Be patient. Look for patterns. Take care. Emulate the masters (biomimicry). Allow the experts (and I DON'T mean humans when I say this), to do their job. Successful migrant species are not vicious invaders hell bent on taking over the world - the benign intelligence and actions of the non-human realm is so far beyond the comprehension of those who believe that man and nature are commodities and / or separate entities.

It's all pretty easy when we choose to stop believing that nature is out to get us and start tuning in to the voices our ears cannot hear.