Leave the Leaves: Being Zen can be good for the Bees

Saturday was entirely mine to do as I wished.  Top of my list:

sip that first, divine cup of coffee outside in my backyard on

an unseasonably warm morning. I felt like it had been years

since I did this, even though it had only been a few months.

I promised myself that I would sit quietly, enjoy, and try not

to listen to that voice in my head that urges me to start

clearing leaves, to not give in to the “shoulds.”

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After so many weeks of bracing for the cold, bundled up in

hat/scarf/gloves/heavy coat, it was so nice to walk freely out

my back door in short sleeves, a breeze on my skin. I found

a spot where I could enjoy the warmth of the sun and soak in

the sounds. What an alive, happy symphony!  Multiple,

chatty, joyful birdsongs were filling my ears from all directions

– they sounded as ecstatic as I was at this unexpected, lovely

warmth and sunshine.  (I closed my eyes, and immediately

saw the whole scene:  house party, with all the birds decked

out in their colorful party feathers, grooving to “Got to Give

It Up” by Marvin Gaye, calling out “Hey!”“Yo!” “What’s Up?” happy at the end of the frantic work week of searching for food, water and safety, ready to let loose. But I digress...) 

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I opened my eyes, looked around, and tried to sit and just BE. It worked for about 15 minutes. Very zen. Then I started to see all the things that needed attention, cleaning up, fixing, trimming, tidied up. Suddenly, I was moving planters, trimming back dead branches, eyeing up those piles of leaves.  

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But then I heard that refrain in my head: “Leave the leaves, please.”  Part of me wanted to ignore that voice and get down to furiously raking the endless piles of leaves that taunted me, taking control of the mess, in turn tidying up my restless mind. But my wise mind argued: if I raked them up, I’d be disturbing and destroying essential habitat for all the creatures who depend on it.  And for what, looks? 

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All winter long, these messy bundles of leaves in my backyard had been quietly doing their job, nourishing the soil from which those first buds and plants were now already emerging. And those very plants will provide food to the pollinators whose visits I look forward to every single year. 

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So, I left the leaves: for the birds who soothed and lifted me with their song, for the bees I witnessed that day already happily buzzing around some early, fragrant blooms, for the moths and butterflies who will soon again fill my eyes with their dance of colorful beauty and delight, for the chirping bats who gobble up those ubiquitous mosquitoes and signal the peace of the approaching dusk. Leaf cover provides habitat for so many creatures which give so much back to the Earth, to the health of the soil, the farms, the waterways, the air. We are each other’s keepers, and we share this planet. This backyard is not mine, it’s ours.  

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If I may suggest to you: leave the leaves.  But if you must tidy up, consider leaving leaves around the bases of trees, along fence lines, and in garden beds, or creating small pockets of leaves in safe spaces where beneficial insects like to flock. You’ll be rewarded with more pollinators visiting and more birds filling your ears with song, and the knowledge that you’ve respected and protected your fellow creatures. And you’ll have saved your energy for better things, like walking back inside to get that second cup of coffee.