I spent the first sunny afternoon we have had in a while, in my garden.  We are told that Nature is the best place to begin to mourn.  There is something about being in a park or by water or by your potted flowers that slows your thinking to a mindless focus.  Spending time in your garden or with your potted plants connects you to the simplicity of life. You can feel the earth in your hands and the sun on your back.  The fragrances of the flowers as you weed and trim floats up to greet your nose. I was joined by my favorite chipmunk who watched me as he ate the peanuts I left for him.  Momma Robin dropped in looking for worms in the shade. The sound of a lawn mower in the distance and the bees humming were background music. No one else was around. I could completely zone out.

This type of solitude is therapeutic. It is physically exhausting and at the same time mentally calming.  When we are grieving, you can feel over stimulated by the stress and expectations of life loud and moving around us. An afternoon in nature allows you to step away from all that.  Wherever you live, try gardening in your yard or patio, tend to a few potted plants or make a little terrarium to care for.  Gardening is good mourning.