Two Inches of Humus
One of the advantages of aging is an increasing ability to have faith in the slow accretion of small changes. If I faithfully return to the downward facing dog (a yoga pose) every day, eventually my heels will touch the floor. If I smile quietly at the older lady in the grocery store every time I check out, eventually she will smile back. If, every year, I remove another section of old rusty barbed wire from our property, eventually I will get it all.
It is so easy to let go of things that cant be done all at once or right away. Easy to be intimidated by projects that seem too large, too long, or too difficult. Easy to quit trying. Easy to give up.
When we moved here, the small slope south of our house was clear. We sledded down it that first spring. Now, 23 years later, the slope is covered with a dense stand of pines 25-30 feet tall. If I had moved away, I never would have known this transition from barren slope to piney woods.
We seem to expect quick change and instant results. The brilliant novel without the work of editing and rewriting. The mastery of a musical instrument without the daily grunt work of practice. The end product without the whole process leading up to it.
Some changes are only apparent over time. Consistent little efforts do accumulate. Big jobs can be done in small pieces. Novels are closer to being finished after you write the first word. The challenge is to keep writing, word after word after word. Trees grow, canyons are formed, expertise accumulates.
If the goal, or the dream, or the project seems too big and overwhelming, take it in small steps. Just keep stepping. The only thing that keeps us from moving forward is not moving forward (!).
I recently reread Wendell Berrys poem, Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front. There is a line in there that enjoins us to
Put your faith in the two inches of humus that will build under the trees every thousand years.
If the earth can have that kind of patience with process, I can certainly keep working at downward facing dog until my heels touch the floor!
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