There was an excellent article in the New York Times yesterday that underlines the risk of addressing symptoms rather than the underlying cause when addressing problems (see http://tinyurl.com/3yw758o).  Such an approach offers appealing and typically profitable short-term gains, but invariably produces long-term side-effects and costs that outweigh the initial benefits.

A biodynamic and organic farmer friend of mine argues that weeds thrive only in compromised soil.  Soil that is weak, imbalanced or deficient is more vulnerable to weeds and the plants grown in such soil are more likely to be plagued with disease or pests.  The fix, according to him, is to fortify and rebalance the soil, which addresses the condition at its root.  Strong terrain makes the soil less vulnerable to weeds and  and more likely to sustain healthy, vibrant plants.

Doctors who practice integrative medicine make the same point about the human body.  Strengthen the host, the theory goes, and you will avert disease.  Much of our current medical system is focused on handling the problem once it has occurred with invasive measures, much like using Roundup to kill weeds.  This offers short-term and immediate results, but typically with long-term consequences.

For example, 190 million doses of antibiotics are prescribed in U.S. hospitals each day.  Another 133 million courses are prescribed outside of hospitals each year.  Using antibiotics in the way that farmers have relied on Roundup is creating a similar problem.  Farmers now face a formidable foe: Roundup resistant weeds while doctors face a similarly challenging opponent: antibiotic resistant bacteria (MRSA).  For more information on how to feed this crisis yourself, see http://tinyurl.com/2fnlyzx.

So what about the weeds you encounter in daily living?  It’s worth taking note of the experience of our country’s farmers and doctors.  While such mistakes are easy to see in hindsight, especially if you’re not caught up in the middle of the problem, there are things you can do now to reduce the likelihood of falling into the same self-perpetuating loop:

1. Strengthen the host.  Make the time to nourish yourself.  Get sufficient sleep.  Eat simple foods.  Drink clean water.  Exercise in everything you do.  Eschew those things in your life that clearly weaken you physically, mentally and spiritually.
2. Cultivate your capacity for long-term vision.  Your capacity to reason needn’t be limited to short-term decision-making.  Learn to iterate, to consider the possibilities of a particular approach or of a logical sequence, and be as honest and objective as possible in the process.  Where will this approach likely end up?
3. Downplay the importance of securing immediate results.  Esau sold his birthright for a mess of pottage, a mistake oft repeated.  Value is established and proven over the long-term.  Be wary of quick fixes, short cuts and cure-for-alls. 
4. Be patient with the process.  Impatience, more than anything, leads to expediency.  Expediency, instead of integrity, brings failure.  Learn to be actively patient.  A friend of mine recently landed a job that she had been working diligently to secure over time.  Patience is not static, it is dynamic.  Likewise, patience properly invested generates pressure.   Pressure, in turn, leads to change.

Have a fruitful day, my friends, and enjoy the remaining days of spring!