Spring Repotting Ritual
Each spring I spend a full day completely immersed in the care of my houseplants. I honestly look forward to spring repotting day like little-tot Steph looked forward to Christmas. This has become such a meditative and enlivening ritual for me that I get a babysitter and give myself total uninterrupted time to become fully present, alive, and inspired.
Why? What’s up with millennials obsessing over their houseplants, you might ask?
Because I genuinely love my plants. I’ve spent a few sincere moments wondering if that’s weird or not. However strange it may be, the surge in houseplant fervor on social media has validated my feelings several times over from even more extreme plant-zealots. And, then, like all things, social media quickly ruined the regular plant-lover’s experience, drowning out our expression with pictures of flawless & impossible-to-achieve houseplant ‘models.’
And, so, I decided to write an ode to reclaim the regular plant lover’s affection of our deeply imperfect plants – the irregular, the blemished, the continually lassoed back from the brink of death because we just have too many balls in the air. Like my human children, I cherish my plants’ individuality, unique stories, and the relationship that we share together.
This is why I celebrate my plants in a spring ritual.
Spring is the best season to assess growth and allocate more space, nutritious soil, and food in preparation for the summer season. Even beyond that, I spend this time channeling my intention and fully indulging in the sensory experience of being in the soil, scent, and moisture of my plants’ living conditions to be present in these celebrations.
Biophillia
Popularized by the late and great E.O. Wilson, biophilia is the “idea that humans possess an innate tendency to seek connections with nature and other forms of life.” By bringing nature indoors and recreating a micro-scaled jungle, I am submerged in the greenery and infused with nature’s aliveness. This gives me peace, calm, and belonging and generally maintains my wellness.
Nature’s pace
Earth has her own pace - her seasons, cycles, and breath. Being in her pace calms my nervous system and cognitively reminds me to step away from the frenetic urgency of the capitalist patriarchy’s synthetic time. There’s no rush and no race. It takes time to grow, to move, and to process. This gives me grounding and security.
Relational reciprocity
Regularly caring for my plants is a mutual relationship, because they provide for me equally as I provide for them. This symbiosis is a constant reminder that the extractive way of modern society is false – and that’s why it feels so wretched. Rather, relational reciprocity and mutual nurturance is rewarding, fulfilling, and the natural way.
Ecological connectedness
Living systems exist together, not in isolation. My generation is desperate to emotionally, ecologically, and spiritually reconnect. That desire manifests as an obsession with houseplants because their care is an accessible and forgiving practice to begin doing so.
While a small way to nourish my soul, this spring ritual pulls me into alignment with Earth’s spirit like few other practices in my life. And I suspect many others feel the way I do too. This longing my generation has for ecological reconnection won’t stop at houseplants. Once awareness grows and reclamation expands, we’re going to bring the whole damn planet back into connection. Mark my words.
