Pruning Time

Annual Vineyard Pruning

Pruning Time

It was hard to see.  So, he pushed his large, fuzzy, black head between the fence slats for a better look.

“Oh, you came to say hello?”  I said as I walked over to rub the protruding head.

My steers were curious.  They hadn’t seen me working in my vineyard for more than six months.  Now that neglect had come to an end!  It was vineyard-pruning time.

Now that most of my vines are several years old they’re beginning to have large trunks serving as an engine of growth.  When I began to prune I admired their size and strength and I could see last year’s growth all tangled along the trellis system.  It was astonishing and a little overwhelming so, I started to prune at the top, just about at my eye level.  Then, I worked methodically down each plant, right down to the base of each trunk, learning valuable lessons as I progressed.

I thought you might enjoy hearing the lessons I learned during my pruning time.

Take time to recognize growth.  It’s easy to live day by day without noticing the power of accumulated progression.  We’re all taking in experience and knowledge as we go about daily activities.  Yet, sometimes it feels as if the lessons you and I are learning are so overwhelming that we haven’t made any personal progress.  If you’ve been neglecting an accounting of your progress make sure to stop for a few hours and make a note of the person you’ve grown to be.  It will fill you with satisfaction and help you reclaim your desired path.

Realign your growth objectives.  I’ve taken the time to create a defined path of growth for the plants in my vineyard.  I did this so I could maximize output, the number of grapes produced.  Pruning is a necessary process to make sure the vines stay on the path I’ve created for them.  The personal goals you’ve created for yourself act as the same kind of “trellis” guide.  The annual pruning ritual allows me to cut away the old growth, sometimes gone wildly astray, so I can redefine the path and create opportunity for new, vigorous and prolific production.   Use your personal pruning time to redefine your goals.  It will create a strong base and naturally open the path for new opportunities to come to you.

Pay attention to your base.  When I prune my vines I make sure to go right down to the base of the trunk.  I do this because even though I pruned the year before, I often find undesirable shoots coming right out of the base of the trunk.  Such shoots aren’t part of my designed trellis system so they don’t fit in with my plans.  This year I found a couple of large shoots that had been snaking along the ground hidden by taller grass.  I clipped them off at the base and cleared the grass away.  Unwanted shoots and unruly grass rob the whole vine of needed water and oxygen.  A strong trunk, base, cleared of competing growth will allow planned growth to take advantage of all the nutrients produced by the plant’s roots.  Use your pruning time to focus on your base and then remove competing distractions.  It will pave the way for your planned growth to flourish.

My vineyard has been flourishing!  I knew that to be the case, but until I had invested the time to do my annual pruning I really didn’t understand to what extent!  At the end of the day I stood next to a huge pile of detached vines now removed from their trunks.  I looked at the pile and then looked back at the curious heads poking between the fence rails.

“Wow!  The growth from last year is amazing!”  I said to those supportive steers.  They simply looked back, fluttered their ears a little and licked their snout before walking away to focus on the new growth grass laid out before them. 

Moosages About Fear

A leash chasing its dog

Moosages About Fear

My Welch Corgi and I were walking toward the barn on a cool, quiet morning on our way to feed.  The cows were hungry, I could tell as soon as we approached. They began to tell us all about it as we advanced toward them.  

Moos were floating on the air as we walked past the cows on our way toward the hay barn.  Merlin’s leash handle was held firmly in my hand.  “Harry Pupper,” was pulling hard on his tether and I could see his broad, muscular chest heaving forward, pulsing under the pressure of his harness right up until we got to the barn door.

When the barn door was pulled open it made a loud screeching sound.  So, its offensive song caused Merlin to pull back in fear and then bolt.  All of a sudden the leash handle was no longer firm in my hand.  It blew past the shrieking metal door and began its dog chase.

The faster Merlin ran, the more he became convinced that he could never shake his pursuer, never realizing that he was being chased by his own fear.  It took me a long while before I was able to catch up to him and put his self-imposed pursuer back under my firm control.  We walked back to the barn together.

Merlin felt safe and comfortable when surrounded by the stacks of hay filling the barn.  He settled in, I scooped up some hay; left Merlin stretched out securely on a bed of fodder, and walked out to feed my hungry cows. That’s when I realized what they were teaching me about dealing with fear.

The lesson began as soon as I awkwardly thrust their breakfast over the corral fence.  My lurching motion caught them by surprise and they instantly jumped back.  What they did next was in stark contrast to Merlin and his dog-chasing leash.

When surprised and antagonized, my cows took a step back and then stopped.  I noticed the way in which they stepped back. They kept their eyes firmly fixed on me.  This allowed them to begin to carefully assess the danger they were facing rather than running away in uncontrolled fear.  They were carefully determining the level of threat they faced.  They demonstrated an intriguing testing phase.

They didn’t rush back in.  They stood back for a few moments until they could evaluate what was coming next.  They held their ground and gathered their courage.  I watched as they moved their heads side to side while always looking forward.

They focused on determining when they could move forward safely again.  They didn’t run when they didn’t need to.  They only stepped carefully forward as soon as they could see it was the right thing to do.  When they did step forward it was done with a show of strength.

When they stepped, they came forward boldly.  Well, they appeared to come forward bravely, but they were faking it.  I could tell.  Anyone who doesn’t know them as I do would find their behavior confident and perhaps even intimidating.  They hid their fear and covered it with movement toward their ambition.

Cows don’t allow fear to rob them of their motivation and desire.  Even though they may be a little frightened they still move forward to enjoy a great breakfast.  They don’t allow their own imagination to chase them away from what they need and want.

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My Welch Corgi wasn’t being chased by his own imagination as we walked home to have our own breakfast.  I held his feared, dog-chasing leash firmly in my hand and as we strolled and I realized that I, too waste a lot of my life by being chased by my own imagination.  I could learn a lot from my cows.

Moosages of Trust

A ferocious storm

Moosages of Trust

The grass all around me was dark green, thick, and tall.  It should have been.  It was spring and the weather had provided an almost perfect pallet for ardent growth.  Some of that weather was now raining down on me in a torrent, driven by high winds.

The wind blew the leg of my trousers up just enough to cause a shiver from the striking of cold hail on my bare skin.  My pants were beginning to soak through.  My coat was beginning to soak through.  I was cold!  I knew my cows were cold as well.

The best way to keep cows warm and healthy in adverse weather is to keep them well fed.  That’s why I was out in this wild, grass promoting weather.  I wanted my cows to be as comfortable as possible.  The weather report had warned me that the worst was about to arrive.  At this very moment, drenched and icy, I was finding it hard to believe it could get much worse.

In such weather conditions cows can become quite skittish.  I’ve seen them race across a field in seconds or buck and jump as if to demonstrate a fervent defiance.  I’ve always found them to be passionate, curious creatures.  That’s why I was approaching them with exceptional caution at this stormy moment.

You might say I wasn’t throwing caution to the wind.  I had no desire to have eighteen hundred pounds of beef to launch me skyward to be ravaged by the wind like a rag doll.  After all, my largest steer is capable of bending a metal pipe, based in concrete, at his whim.  And, last I looked; I was still mostly skin and bone.  All of which, I wanted to remain in tact.

At the moment, I was still all put together; in tact, and the welcome I received by the steers was one of calm confidence.

As I walked into the hay barn calm enveloped me.  I was protected from the rain, wind, sleet and hail.  I lifted some hay and braved back into the torrent.  I wanted my furry friends to receive the same protection so I intended to feed them in a different than customary location.

I walked out.  They followed.  They ate comfortably.  They stayed within the protection offered.  Their behavior caused me to really consider the moosage they were giving me.  

Here is the communication my cows gave me about building and maintaining trust.

Be consistent.  I’ve tried to feed them at or near the same time and place twice, each day.  That’s why they were waiting for me at their feeding rack, even when the weather was dreadful.  They knew I’d come at that time, at that location.  They were so certain of it that they had left the protection of their warm, dry stable in advance of my arrival.  Consistency makes a difference, especially during times of adversity!

Bank your time.  Trust isn’t earned over a short period of time.  I’ve spent months and years with these cows.  They’ve been able to observe me over a long time.  So, they know I have their best interest at heart because I’ve proven it to them time and time again.  They could have been very upset because of the intemperate weather.  They could have run away or hurt me badly because of an imperfect circumstance, but they didn’t.  They knew I would lead them to safety, so the followed.  They had spent enough time with me to be certain of my motives.

Create a comfortable relationship.  I’ve worked to develop my relationship with these cows on many different levels.  The sound of my voice, my touch, my smell, my movements, the taste of their food have all become part of how we interact together.  When I approach them I call out in voice as a welcome.  When I’m close, I reach out and let them sniff my hand.  To reassure them, I rub their heads, sides, and backs.  I stand and do these things as they eat so they associate all of my movements with the pleasure of being fed.  I’ve made it comfortable for them to be with me.

You and I can use these same Moosages of Trust in all of our relationships.  If we will, those around us will enjoy a high level of confidence.  Remember to be consistent, bank your time and create a comfortable relationship.  It will be worth it; because all of us will need to endure many storms in life!

Four Youth

Landon’s First Birthday

Four Youth

Some people are young when they become grandparents.  Some people are not.  Am I speaking of chronology here?  You might think so.  And, I’m sure you understand that almost no matter how one looks as age, chronology generally has something to do with it.  For example, April is Landon’s, my grandson, first birthday.

I wanted to be with him to celebrate his very first birthday, so I traveled across North America to be there.  After all, a first birthday is a day of increased significance if only because of its position.  It is first!  We often use “first” as a measuring stick throughout our lives.  And Landon’s first birthday is a measure of significant progress. Celebrating it with him taught me about measuring age in ways beyond the numbers.

Landon is young!  That fact is beyond dispute.  But, how about you and me?  Are you and I young?  Perhaps we’re not chronologically, but you and I can use Landon’s four measurements of living a youthful life as a guide to determining our non-chronological age.

Vision.   Landon is just learning to walk.  That means he is anxious to explore.  His eyes drink the world in and he rushes to explore everything he sees.  I found him examining everything he could see, touch and taste.  As I watched him I soon found that I had become blind to much for my surrounding world.  Who knew that the fireplace in his family room had small stones in its base?  Landon!  People who live in a youthful way have a broad and detailed vision of the big, wide world right down to the tiny and seemingly insignificant.  They use that vision to explore everything around them with excitement and energy.  Their visionary approach to the world prepares them to become more.

Preparation.  Landon has taught me that preparation is pursuing the now and new.  Most of us think of preparation as shoring ourselves up so we can manage whatever unknowns are thrown at us.  Yes.  That is true.  And, it is having the ability to overcome personal fears by engaging in the world now, while exploring the new.  It’s the way a person begins to have increased capacity, by becoming filled with the surrounding infinite.

Practice.  Living with infinite possibility requires resilience, which is another way of suggesting practice.  Landon follows his inner voice to keep moving. It prods him forward no matter how many times he falls.  He walks, crawls, and climbs, over and over again.  Then, as if by magic, he masters another skill.  His desire for practice is far stronger than any internal fear or trepidation.

Risk.  Because Landon uses the entire world as his practice field, his view of risk has been transformed.  It has transformed him into a risk taker.  I’m not talking about being a daredevil here.  I’m talking about engaging in the world around you and me.  Landon isn’t worried about what other people think.  He’s busy being focused on exploration.

He’s exploring the world around him, how he fits in it, what he can learn from it and how to interact with it.  He understands that the real risk is the risk that comes from a lack of growth, the absence of risk.

If a person’s living is absent of any one of Landon’s four measures of youth they are at risk of aging.  Are you at risk?  Are you an old grandparent?  Are you an old parent? Are you just old?  Perhaps you’re old in a young body?  Would you like to feel youthful again?

Incorporate Landon’s First Measurements of Youthful Living into your way of life and see if the combination will allow you to begin to measure your age beyond the numbers Four Youth!