Mix up a piña colada and cue the Yacht Rock Radio to read this blog post.
Although I don’t live near a body of water my soul craves its presence.
I was born in the sign of water and it’s there that I feel my best…
Ok now that I have the Yacht Rock song stuck in your head, I’ll continue with this analogy using the iconic song from Little River Band – Time for a cool change…
This is the time of year that the relentless Texas heat has us weary. Both The Fixer and I are out in the heat daily. I don’t expect my plants to thrive in this heat, I just hope to keep them alive until the fall cool down and rains happen.
But at some point, we become so beaten down by the sun that we feel the need to escape. Somewhere very cool. Sometimes it’s to the mountains but I prefer the ocean. Not the Texas ocean – still too hot. The Pacific Ocean is my jam and Laguna Beach my favorite spot.
The albatross and the whales they are my brothers…
We can get on a plane and in three hours go from the depths of hell to the heavenly wash of ocean breezes and the cool surf splashing over our feet.
The sound of the surf is my favorite, its calm rhythm soothes my soul. Every morning I’m there I rise early and walk the beaches, marveling that I can stand outside without feeling like popcorn that got left too long in the microwave. The frigid Pacific Ocean water cools me to the core.
It’s kind of a special feeling, when you’re out on the sea alone…
But this year, for various reasons (thank you COVID-19) we’re not taking the annual trek to cooler locales. We’re staying put. So, while it’s time for a cool change, we can only dream.
Now, it’s especially important for me to keep things alive. If I can’t escape this heat, I need to see green plants, not brown stalks. Which has me thinking a lot about how much I rely on water.
Water is wonderful!
Water keeps my landscape green. Water keeps my vegetables growing in adverse conditions. Water lets me push the envelope of my growing zone with exotic plants.
One of those plants I like to grow is a tender perennial from tropical America, Hoja Santa, or root-beer plant. I usually grow native plants to help conserve water, but this is one I’ve indulged in because it’s so unique. Visitors to my garden ask what is, and I love explaining that cooks in southern Mexico use its giant leaves to wrap fish and tamales giving the food a herby, anise, root-beer flavor. But I’ve never actually tried to prepare fish this way.
This weekend I’m hosting a birthday celebration for all my Virgos. We would normally do this at a restaurant but (thank you COVID-19), this year we’re celebrating at home. So, I’ve decided to attempt the Hoja Santa baked fish.
I’m using a recipe from The Herb Garden Cook Book by Lucinda Hutson. The recipe is full of fresh herbs from the garden. I hope I can pull it off for my small group.
So, the Hoja Santa is getting a little more pampered with water than usual, keeping the leaves nice and green and full in preparation for harvest. Water is what makes this plant possible for me. We’re so lucky to have clean water available by turning a tap! I respect the need to conserve, but I sometimes indulge in it.
Water offers obvious benefits to plants, but it has many therapeutic benefits for people with chronic pain. Water in a bath or spa provides relief to muscle tension and joint stress. Even if you’re not a swimmer, just floating in a pool or hot tub takes pressure off troubled joints and frayed nerves. I love the range of motion possible in my knees when all the weight and stress is taken out of the equation. And a wider range of motion brings healing blood flow and fluids to joints that they otherwise can’t get.
Water is soothing.
Even the sound of water provides a therapeutic effect. The rhythmic sound of the surf relaxes brainwaves and promotes the production of dopamine and serotonin…
I know it may sound selfish, but let me breathe the air…
Water is healing.
Even if you don’t live by the ocean or a lake or even a pond, you can incorporate water into your life and benefit from its tremendous healing powers. If you have a pool or access to one, get in some floating time and take the stress off your joints. You can take Epsom salt baths regularly which provides minerals much like the salty sea breeze. If your budget allows, you can get regular healing relief from a jetted hot tub. You can purchase a small foot spa for some healing indulgence.
Incorporate the healing sounds of water with an outdoor fountain or a small indoor tabletop fountain. If you’re up for the care and maintenance, consider a fish tank.
Recently I made a new friend at a Korean Natural Farming training class who gardens using aquaponics. Casey pointed out that aquaponics incorporates the therapeutic benefits of water with our favorite pastime, gardening! He generously offered to show me his setup and teach me about this method of gardening and why it’s so beneficial to people with disabilities. I’m excited about the possibilities of incorporating some of these methods into my own gardening and sharing the information with you. Watch for Water is Wonderful Part II, where we explore aquaponics that combines water and gardening therapy.
Water is wonderful and crucial to my mental and physical health. Since I can’t get to the west coast this year, I’ll torture my kids during the family birthdays celebration and make them listen to Yacht Rock and the sound of the ocean surf.
If there’s one thing in my life that’s missing…
Water is wonderful, find a way to bring its therapeutic benefits into your life.
Happy Gardening!
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