> One thing I have learned as a lifelong gardener is that life is not really about survival of the fittest. It’s not even about adaptation. (Sorry Darwin.) It’s really about survival of the happiest. The plants and creatures that are happiest are the ones that thrive. And each plant (or animal, for that matter) requires different things to be happy. Some need sun, others shade. Some prefer dry, others wet. But if they are in the right spot and encouraged with love, they become happy and thrive. They spread to fill in the empty spots. They come back again and again every year. They surprise us by popping up in new places nearby. They don’t need fertilizer or chemicals. They are just happy, and they know it. I don’t need to know exactly why this is so, because I believe in the magic of it all. It’s the magic of regeneration, which we all have access to. > – Maria Rodale, [[Love Nature Magic]]