Friday afternoon hand tool meditation and the duck that got the better of me…

The rice knife used to cut the grass for chicken forage

On Friday afternoons I try and collect a large wheel barrow of grass for the weekend chicken forage. This way Tom or I don’t have to do it on our day off. We collect the grass by cutting it with a handtool called a rice knife. Today I realised what a great meditative practice this is. I set myself a goal of how big an area I want to clear, and then I cut. And I cut. And I cut some more. During the cutting, I became calm, let my thoughts wander but still stayed focused. People pay a fortune to get that experience! And then they go home and use the whipper snipper or mower (can you say disturbing! Gone is the peace and quiet!) Handtools are fabulous, allowing you to peacefully work away, doing physical labour whilst nurturing your soul. I have been a computer programmer or involved in other computer related activities for most of my working life. I have come to realise that motorised or electronic tools have their place, but it should not become a thing that you constantly do. For me, it is essential that I step away from that, have peace and quiet around me, and can just focus on a simple physical task, which gives me a lot of satisfaction. In this case, I was cleaning an area, making it easier to walk through, whilst collecting forage for the chickens and giving me a bonus mediation!

Wheel barrow full of grass for the chickens tomorrow morning, plus a tidied up space to access the chicken pens.

In the middle of my meditation I had to go and feed the goats. When I came up to the goat pen, one of our ducks was close. The ducks can get in through the fencing and if you let them, they eat the goats’ feed… So I tried to shoo the duck away, she went away for a little bit, but then came back and entered the goat enclosure. So I tried to get her to take her back with me, or at least to chase her out, but she ducked (pun intended) and dove around me, eventually ending up in the goat paddock, laughing at me I’m sure! Tom got her down eventually with the help of our dog, who is getting quite good at rounding up the animals!

Duck n dive duck

Thank goodness I was able to get back to my meditative practice for a while after that, so now I am energised for the weekend!

©2016 Zaia; permeco.org, incorporating Permaculture Research Institute Sunshine Coast, simplicity, permaculture, self reliance, food, health and homesteading, Permaculture hand tools and chasing a duck around

Author: Permeco Inc.

Not for profit organisation and charity based in Queensland, Australia, focusing on permaculture education and environmental research. Please note that all articles and recipes written under this label on this website prior to 2025 are written and copyrighted by Willa Sevenstern (previously known as Zaia Kendall).