"Oops! Busted!"

Our buddy the squirrel has been at it again. The cherry tomatoes make a perfect snack for a thirsty guy, just the right size to fit between two little paws. I’m not going to run him off. There are plenty of tomatoes to go around, and besides, who can resist this face?

Meantime, while I wait for rain that may actually arrive this week (please, weather gods, don’t toy with me), I am sinking ever more deeply into the rhythms of nature. I have written before about how the garden has given me a greater connection to the month and to the seasons, but now I am finding my way through an Ayurvedic day, learning the best times of day to eat, rest, work, and exercise.

Though health conscious before I started to garden, having green, growing vegetables stare me in the face every day reminds me of the importance of taking care of myself. So, I recently embarked on Dr. John Douillard’s The Colorado Cleanse, based on Ayurvedic principles. Though I have practiced yoga, Ayurveda’s sister, for decades, I have only flirted with Ayurveda. In this cleanse, which lasts for two weeks, I have a daily routine of diet, exercise, yoga, meditation, breathwork, and massage to stimulate the lymph. I also take particular herbs that support the cleanse.

A week into the cleanse, I’m feeling pretty good. It took a few days to get my blood sugar to adjust (I had to add whey protein powder to my meals), but my energy level has already improved. More interesting for the purpose of this blog, though, is how my body is naturally shifting to the ideal Ayurvedic day. That is, I am rising naturally before sunrise and getting to bed before 10:00 p.m. I do my exercise in the morning, something I’ve never liked to do before, but it feels good now. I feel alert and refreshed in the morning, and I’m not having the mid-afternoon sinking spell. Just another way that the garden (with some help from Dr. Douillard) is changing my life!