How Gardening Has Helped My Mom with her Grief

Full Disclosure: Maggie’s Farm sponsored this post about how gardening has helped my mom with her grief. All thoughts and words are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that support Girl Eats World. 

This last winter was the hardest winter of my life. My dad fell ill in October and died in January. From October to January, I felt like I was sprinting through my life and falling short in every way. Then when dad died, my family and I continued to be in panicked/survival mode as we dealt with the bills and admin stuff on top of our grief. It was a blessing and a curse that I am self-employed because I think any conventional job might have let me go. The curse is that if I don’t work, I don’t earn. There are no personal days available for when your life falls apart when you’re self-employed.

We are finally moving out of winter and into spring. I am visiting my mom as I write this blog post. There are flowers blooming and the grass is cut, thanks to a recent visit from my brother. The garden looks the best it has since October. One of my dad’s favorite places that he shared with my mom is their garden. They spent hours outside daily after they retired. They’d lose track of time while they gardened together, only noticing the time when their stomachs start to growl.

Now that my mom is on her own, I worry about how she’s going to spend her time as she moves through life without her beloved husband of 44 years. Consistently warmer days means my mom can finally spend more time outside in their garden and harvest some of the fruits and vegetables that they grew in their backyard. She is starting to spend more time out there. She tells me sometimes she cries while she weeds. She says she always feels accomplished and lighter when she finishes a gardening session. I think it’s a beautiful thing.

As the Texas bugs get a resurgence with warmer weather, I thought I’d arm her with Maggie’s Farm Home Bug Spray. Because she loves going out in the garden, there will be plenty of opportunities for little critters to pop in her home while she works in the yard.

The Maggie’s Farm Home Bug Spray can be found at Target. The active ingredients are primarily derived from plant oils. There are no harmful residues when you use this product and they’re safe to use around children and pets when used as directed. I love that! One of my goals this year is to make a road trip back to Texas with my dogs so they can be reunited with their grandma. The dogs love licking all sorts of surfaces when they explore, so I’m glad I can rest easy.

Being outside, gardening, and doing something my dad used to do is therapeutic for my mom. I love being able to join her when visiting from North Carolina, and I’m so happy products like the Home Bug Spray and other similar products by Maggie’s Farms could help us do so more comfortably!

So tell me, friends, what activities do you find therapeutic?

For a list of books that have helped me with my grief journey, check out this post.

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