‘There can be no joy in life without the joy of work.’
Thomas Aquinas
Firstly, I’d like to make clear that I’m not talking about ‘grafting’ as in ‘extortion’, but as in satisfying, productive, physical work. In our industrial growth society, I mourn the decrease in this activity with the advances in technology and automation. But it’s not just these mechanical innovations that have caused us to reduce how much of each day we spend on manual labour. If we valued this practice, then surely we would’ve made sure that it remained a sacred part of our everyday lives.
What’s changed our values?
Off the top of my head, some initial thoughts are:
• Class structure: earning a living from manual labour signifies, in the social order, that we belong to the lower classes. Those belonging to a higher class employ others to do their manual work.
• Advent of the ‘Knowledge Economy’ – there are fewer manual jobs.
• Automation and mechanisation is regarded as a sign of technological progress, a source of improved efficiency and productivity, so high numbers of manual labourers have become indicative of a less advanced, less ‘civilised’ economy.
• Uniformity and standardization have become valued over individuality, innovation, beauty, design and creativity.
What seems to be behind all of these is the tendency within our culture to value money and status above wellbeing and the assumption that our worth is determined by something or someone outside of ourselves.
The joy of grafting for me, in contrast, stems from my beliefs that my wellbeing and that of others is more important to me than money, status or What Others Think. This is an example of one of the shifts in perspectives that occurs when we start adopting a more simple and sustainable way of living.
‘When we are at home in the garden, tending and nurturing all its plants, animals and minerals, living with them through all the seasons and days, then healing comes upon us like a gift and makes us whole.’
Christopher Bamford.
What are the benefits of grafting?
• Easily discernable evidence of our achievement and the inner satisfaction of experiencing that.
• Physical exercise which keeps us fit.
• Creativity – an uplifting sense of beauty and purpose.
• Intrinsic motivation (the opposite of extrinsic motivation based on What Others Think.)
• Improved sleep through feeling physically tired at the end of the day.
• Experiential learning or learning by doing, which is more effective for most people than learning by reading or listening to others.
• Increased time being in our bodies – embodiment. This is when we are present to our bodies through directing our attention there. It reduces stress and anxiety, increases ability to relax, to be present and enjoy each moment. It also increases self-awareness and therefore self-empowerment.
• Connection with the earth or with others. (interestingly, grafting also means to join or to unite closely). This can improve our understanding of our place in the web of life and thereby add meaning to our lives and put it in context for us. Finding the meaning in what we’re doing and cultivating genuine companionship can also lift feelings of despair and depression.
• Mindfulness in action – an opportunity to practise being present, to reduce stress, to improve our concentration, focus and clarity.
• Source of inspiration which we can then carry across into other areas of our lives. In my experience, grafting fosters connections between the physical, mental and spiritual aspects of my being, which can result in helpful intuitive sparks and guidance.
The distinction between joyful grafting and ‘doing chores’ is very eloquently described in John Lane’s book ‘Timeless Simplicity’. Here, he regards activities to do with gardening, preparing and cooking food and homemaking as ’The Sacred Arts’. They are activities to be savoured, honoured and enjoyed, rather than blitzed, resented and tolerated. Don’t you just love that as a way of reframing ‘domestic drudgery’?
Of course, it’s equally important to keep heavy physical labour in balance with other types of work and activities and in alignment with our state of health and stage of life. Moderation and harmony are values that spring to mind here.
What constitutes joyful grafting for you?
This site seeks to explore the heart and soul of downshifting to a more sustainable, ethical and holistic way of living and working, in keeping with the needs of the planet, humanity as a whole and ourselves as individuals. 
Interesting post – I wonder if what we are both doing now (you blogging this article and me reading it in a browser) will someday be considered what manual labor is to us today? It is funny that you wrote this, as I have recently found myself doing things in non-mechanized ways. For instance, I had bought some home improvement stuff and carried it in my wife’s SUV and made a mess of the back. Instead of getting a vacuum out to clean it, I found myself systematically picking out hundreds of pieces of straw from the carpet. It was somehow pleasing to do it that way. Things like sweeping the front driveway and walk, instead of using a leaf blower. I know these sound trivial, but I am a person who is online 12 hours a day at work or when doing other tasks… my department at work is even named the “Automation Team” believe it or not LOL. I never realized until reading your post that I must be seeking out something slower where I can free my mind in ways that online work can’t.
Jamie – I do like what you say about ‘freeing your mind’. There’s a lot to be said, I think, for unplugging ourselves from the online world for a little while and connecting with the more tangible, physical and grounded. I’ve found that I’ve become so used to using ‘devices’, that sometimes it can challenge my creative skills to come up with a method of completing a task (like your cleaning up your wife’s vehicle) that does not involve the use of energy (other than mine that is!). Perhaps your ‘picking out hundreds of pieces of straw’ became a kind of meditation for you? And no, not trivial at all, especially where our wellbeing is at stake.
The other evening I finally got round to patching some trousers that I loved but had got a little worn, and debobbling a cardigan. Doesn’t sound the most exciting way to spend a Sunday evening but I got thorougly absorbed, felt very satisfied with what I had done and am now the happy wearer of my beloved trousers.
Joyful grafting is probably a state of mind. If it feels like a chore we can try changing our mindset towards what we’re doing. I think possibly the advantage of manual labour is that it employs mental and physical resources together and so uses up some of the adrenaline and tension running around in our body that being at a computer or switching on a washing machine doesn’t.
Interestingly the stats I tend to see suggest with all these household labour saving devices we’re not saving time. I reckon this is because we just create more work for ourselves – like people do more clothes washing and more ironing. Recently I discovered ironing your bed sheets is more common than I thought. I can’t quite see the point in it myself.
I find that often the most satisfying of tasks are those that require repetitive manual work, generally not heavy manual labour though. I feel like I totally relax when doing these simple but repetitive tasks: my mind isn’t straying as it needs to stay mindful on the task but the task itself doesn’t require problem solving, just attentiveness. One of my favourites used to be stinging strands of gemstone beads, especially those without patterns. Weeding is another task like this.
Alison and Beverley – what wonderful insights! Thankyou for sharing your experiences. Like you, Alison, I question whether labour saving devices actually save us much time. Maybe as with electricity and fossil fuels, we need to look at reducing our total use of personal energy first, then what we’re using it for and how that affects our wellbeing?
I enjoy repetitive manual work too, Beverley and appreciate what you say about tasks requiring attentiveness. Sometimes (like this week, after so much rain) I look at how much weeding there is to do in the garden and resist making a start on it. However, once I do get out there, I almost always enjoy it – communing with the worms and the centipedes!
Hi Sally, Hi All,
A few years ago, when I had a garden (I only have a balcony now), my electric lawn mower blew up. Much to the amusement of my neighbours I purchased a manual one. What a delight! The gentle whirring of the blades, more time with the grass and more connection with just being outside. I guess because it was a slower process and quieter. A much gentler way of being and one I thoroughly recommend….if you have a small lawn!
Also – last year I was a given a carpet sweeper. I didn’t know they still made them!! OK, not as good as a vaccuum, but again a less noisy approach to housework and certainly an alternative which saves a little electricity.
Deb, That is great! I have had an electric lawn mower for 10 years, and I have literally worn out the wheel bearings and wheels. So this summer I stared cutting my lawn (much reduced in size over the years anyway due to planting small gardens and such) with an electric weed eater gadget. Not quite as good as you and the human powered lawn mower. It takes me more time, but it is fun to run the thing back and forth. You post has started me thinking that I need to buy one of those manual push cutters :-)
Peace, Jamie
Hi, Sally
Really enjoyed the Joy of Grafting article. It seems to me that for many people locked into the consumer way of life it is difficult to see what purpose grafting serves when ‘shortcuts’ are available (even though often those shortcuts are not real shortcuts at all!). Can I put in a plea for a form of grafting for which, as far as I know there is no mechanical shortcut. Many charity shops are desperately in need of volunteers to help sort and prepare donations for sale. This is definitely a form of Joyful Grafting – it is physical work, has elements of repetition, is a good social activity (there are likely to be others volunteering at the same time), you can physically see the results of your labour and is really worthwhile as it helps to raise money for the charity of the volunteer’s choice as well as helping to stop stuff going to landfill. Ann
Deb – I didn’t realise you could still get manual lawn mowers and carpet sweepers either! Both of those are looking like viable replacements for our electricity powered versions when the time arises. We’ve gradually been reducing the amount of lawn in the garden anyway, as it is gradually being replaced with raised beds. Inside the house, the proportion of floor covered in carpet is diminishing too during our eco-renovation process.
You mention that the carpet sweeper is not as good as the vacuum cleaner and I’m guessing that innovation has not been focussed in this area because of the availability of cheap and plentiful energy up until now. As that situation changes, maybe we’ll be seeing some new and improved manual versions of quite a few familiar gadgets.
Ann – What a very convincing plea! And we seem to have a wide selection of charity shops in our town to choose from. I shall investigate!
The manual carpet sweeper isn’t as good, as it’s a little square sweeper and comes with no attachments, so it can’t cope with some areas. A sweeper with no attachments is good for all Buddhists though!!LOL!!
Funnily enough, I bought a carpet sweeper as well recently. I was fed up with the dustbuster thing we had constantly running out of charge. The carpet sweeper may not be perfect but it is simple.
Deb… LOLOLOLOL