Lessons from Blackberry Picking.
My husband and I recently picked some blackberries on the land where we live. Why? Because there were tons, and they are packed with fiber and immune supporting antioxidants, if you must know.
The experience became a metaphor for seven guidelines I think are important on one’s healing journey.
1. Perspective.
My husband was picking berries ahead of me. At first I was thinking that he would “steal” all the good berries. But when I would get to the areas from where he had already been picking, I would find loads more berries to put in my bowl. Berry abundance!
“Why didn’t he snag them?” you’re wondering. I thought the same thing!
It came down to perspective. My husband is a towering 16 inches taller than I am. He couldn’t see what I could see and vice versa.
I found something else interesting. I would pick all that I could see from a particular vantage and turn just slightly to find a whole new batch in the same area. Again. A new perspective made all the difference.
This is true in health as well. Even if you’ve been to every medical doctor in the area with out success, it doesn’t mean you’ve exhausted all the possibilities for getting well. I, as a Naturopathic Doctor and Brain-Based Transformation Coach, have a very different perspective. Maybe there is a food that is offending your system? Maybe there is an emotional component to your symptoms? Regardless of what you have been told, I bet you I can help you see the situation from a different vantage point.
My favorite place to look is the intersection between your health, and your life’s work.
2. Perseverance.
Berry picking was painful. It was hot. I was sweating. There were wasps protecting the sweet fruits. The bushes are covered in thorns. At one point I got stuck in the mud, breaking my flipflop. But I kept picking. I kept doing the work.
Sometimes a healing journey isn’t comfortable. Sometimes you need to feel worse before you feel better. Sometimes you have to endure painful treatments, or hard conversations about memories of your past.
But if you want to get better you have to keep doing the work.
Naturopathic medicine and Brain-Based Transformation Coaching both get to the root cause of illness. This can take some time. But you gotta just keep doing the work. Everyday take another step towards getting well. Soon you’ll harvest the berry fruits of your labour. You’ll look back and see how the pain made you stronger, healthier and happier.
3. Gratitude.
The afternoon was challenging and dangerous (see #2 above). But you know what I found? The more I expressed my gratitude for this delicious harvest, the less it hurt.
I know. that seems a bit woo woo. But seriously. I swear.
If I remembered to say, “Thank you,” each time I picked a berry, the thorns seemed to turn the other way, and the wasps flew on.
Even if you’re the unhealthiest you’ve been in your entire life, you can find something to be grateful for about your body. Focus on the good.
What’s still working? How about all those automatic things that you don’t even think about that your body is looking after for you? Breathing! Digestion! Circulating nutrients!
I bet you there is something. Tell me about what’s working in your body and for what you can be grateful below.
4. Community.
I found it was more productive berry picking with two people. But also I used my bucket to push the branches out of the way to find more berries. I had a tool that I used to get even better results.
Ask for help. If you’re not satisfied with the help you’ve been getting, get new help.
This is your life. Your body.
(I made it easy for you to tweet that!)
5. Curiosity.
Flushing out the idea of perspective, there was a whole new world under the leaves. I found feast upon feast when I lifted up those leaves. Berries galore!!!
Often what’s on the surface is just part of the picture. You know that classic example of the iceberg? Deep below our physical symptoms is a pile of old, subconscious beliefs that might be keeping us from getting well.
You gotta look under the leaves to find these juicy nuggets. Brain-Based Transformation Coaching is my favorite tool for this. The deeper we can work, the more berries we’ll find. The better and longer lasting the change you’re hoping to see.
6. Fun.
She even picked a couple of the low-hanging fruit. That was pretty cute. “Hmmm… what are Food Guy and Food Girl doing? Maybe I’ll try…”
I believe that we’re here on this planet in this life to have fun. The major “Why” of my work is to make sure people get and stay healthy so they can have fun doing what they love for as long as possible. My inner (okay, and outer) goof just wants you happy. Fun needs to be scheduled into the day, and into the healing journey.
7. Own Journey.
After about an hour and a half we had a couple buckets full of berries.
My husband said, “I’m going to juice these.” I felt my inner sneer become and outer one.
“Why?”
“Because I want to try making blackberry apple cider.”
My sneer deepened into a furrow. “Oh. I thought we were going to freeze them.”
“Well. You can freeze yours. And I’ll juice mine.” Harumph.
My husband is a great teacher to me, although I’m not sure if he always realizes it. He hands me my crap back on a regular basis. I had a preconceived notion (what my sister calls “my headplans”) about how I wanted the berries to be used.
He had a different goal. And both goals were fine. Just as I didn’t want him stepping in the way of reaching my goals, I would never step in the way of him reaching his.
At the end of the day, it’s your health journey. It doesn’t matter what others say or do, you gotta do what you feel/know/suspect to be good and right for you. Juice your berries. Freeze your berries. It’s your choice.
Remember to leave a comment below and share what you’re grateful for about your body. Perhaps it’s something you’ve realized you’re taking for granted?
