🌱 🌷 Starting Seeds - The Slow Life Stories - Bedtime Stories for Adults - Calming Stories for Grownups and All Ages

Welcome to The Slow Life - A village filled with cozy stories for everyone. This story is called Starting Seeds, and it’s about a generous neighbour, a cat who loves lasagne, and noticing quiet sounds.

🇨🇦 These stories are written, edited and narrated by Jennifer Zwicker.

~~~~

Benefits of listening to cozy stories or adult bedtime stories with The Slow Life:

1. Relaxation and Stress Relief

• You want to unwind after a stressful day.

• The gentle pacing, soothing tone, and comforting narratives help calm your mind and body.

2. Help Falling Asleep

• Many people use bedtime stories as a sleep aid. We’ve been told ours help.

• A calming story distracts from anxious or racing thoughts, making it easier to drift off. Especially with a second reading as we have, because you already know what happens.

3. Comfort and Nostalgia

• You’re looking for the emotional safety and warmth that often comes with familiar or gently imaginative stories.

• Cozy stories can evoke fond childhood memories or a sense of being cared for.

4. Escape and Imagination

• A peaceful story can provide a gentle escape from reality without overstimulation.

• Listeners enjoy being transported to a calm village, a peaceful garden, or a quaint and cozy inn.

5. Mindfulness and Presence

• The slow, descriptive nature of cozy storytelling encourages a mindful focus on the present.

• It can be a form of meditative listening, grounding you, the listener, in sensory details and slow pacing.

6. Companionship and Connection

• Perhaps, for people who live alone or feel lonely, a narrator’s voice can feel like friendly company.

• It’s a quiet, non-demanding form of social presence.

🧡 Bedtime stories for grown ups

🧡 Bedtime stories for kids

🧡 Meditation story

Starting Seeds is a story about going for a walk in the morning, talking to a friendly neighbour who then gives some seeds out of the goodness of their heart, and planting those seeds on my patio. There is beauty, there is comfort. It may help put you to sleep. Calming stories to help you sleep. Relieve anxiety.

⚠️ Take care listening while driving or doing any activity that requires your full attention.

• All stories - Copyright Jennifer Zwicker 2024, 2025

Episode Transcript

(00:02):
Welcome to The Slow Life, a village filled with cozy stories
for everyone. I'll read this story 2 times to
help you zone out or even fall asleep during the second
reading. This story is called Starting

(00:23):
Seeds and it's about a generous neighbor, a cat who loves
lasagna and noticing quiet sounds.
I've been out for a morning walkon the trail that reaches the
beach. I took a few breaths to match

(00:45):
the waves strolling in and out before heading back home.
As I came up to my neighbor's place, I saw that she was out at
her garden shed, all set up at her outdoor table to plant seeds
to start growing inside. I'd stopped in to say hello and

(01:10):
after chatting for a few minutesabout the weather and how
excited we were about how the gardens will soon be coming to
life again, she had given me herextra egg curtains to do some
seed planting of my own. She'd also offered me some extra

(01:32):
seeds that she had more than enough of for her own use.
It's still fairly early as I arrive home and I like it that
way. My shoulders drop in relaxation
knowing that a bit of my day is now planned out.

(01:53):
I had already prepped for this day by getting bags of potting
soil and collecting newspapers from my parents to contain the
mess I'm bound to make during this process.
I think my backyard patio and table are the perfect spot to

(02:15):
host my seed planting this spring.
Sun is still mild enough that I don't need to hide under the
patio umbrella, which hasn't yetbeen brought out for the season.
For starters, I cover the outdoor table with the
newspaper, layering sheets untilthe whole surface is filled with

(02:41):
stories. I giggle.
I had a few of my favorite comicstrips that have been around
since before I was born. You know, the one about the cat
who hates Mondays and loves lasagna?
The crossword puzzles are impressively complete.

(03:03):
Some pages have partial rings from coffee cups, and one page
is missing a window of space where they'd cut out something
interesting. It seems to have been a recipe
from their favorite column. I wonder what it was and if they
tried it yet. I head back into the kitchen

(03:27):
where the rest of my seed packets are in the buffet drawer
with the matches and tea lights.Some are store bought, folded in
their glossy paper with bright pictures on the front and much
appreciated directions on the back.

(03:48):
Others are saved in envelopes I'd sealed and written on last
fall. Butternut squash that had grown
up a wooden ladder against the fence, sugar snap peas that had
done well on the patio in big pots and pumpkins, which yielded

(04:10):
enough for Jack O lanterns and afew pies around Thanksgiving.
As good as growing my own plantsright from seed fields, saving
seeds from those plants and using them the following year
feels even better. Some of the trees are the egg

(04:32):
curtains from my neighbor with perfectly sized cells waiting to
be reused. I'm all for wearing gardening
gloves at times, but today I getmy fingers dark with soil,
knowing I can scrub them off later.

(04:54):
I fill each space in the curtains with potting mix.
The smell of the damp earth rising upwards, noticing the
quiet sounds that accompany me is all part of the experience.
The soft crinkle of the bag thatholds the soil, my hands

(05:16):
crumbling the bigger chunks thatdrop into the curtains and
trays, and the birds never far away, probably eyeing the black
seeds beside me that will turn into sunflowers throughout the
summer. I remember with the peas to soak

(05:37):
them in some water for a few days first, so I get their trays
ready, but the soil will have towait while the peas begin to
sprout their tiny tails. Once a tray is filled with
enough soil, I place a packet ofseeds beside it to mark which

(05:59):
ones will be filled with what. The butternut squash is first
because it's the one I'm most proud of.
I haven't bought seeds for thesein years because the crop always
does well and I can save so manyof the seeds for the following

(06:20):
spring. I like the size of the seeds.
They're easy to handle and difficult to lose between your
fingers or be taken by a sudden gust of wind.
I place the seed into each cell as gently as putting a sleeping

(06:41):
puppy into their bed, whisperingto them in my mind.
See you soon, little ones. I scoop more soil up into my
hands to cover them just enough to keep them safe, not worrying
about the dirt that spills over the sides as the paper will help

(07:04):
me gather it all to be used in the final trays.
I plant the pumpkins the same way and then the ever dependable
green beans. They seemed to grow no matter
what, as long as I pay a little attention to them.

(07:24):
Some of the other packets are less familiar, so I'll need to
pay closer attention to the instructions jotted on the
backs. I picked them up from the seed
exchange at the library. The brown envelopes with
handwriting in all capital letters or beautiful cursive.

(07:49):
At one of the cafes, they'd lefta box of seed packets near the
napkin dispensers. I took a few while waiting for
my drink, drawn to names like Calendula and Purple Carrot.
Those go in to different trays. The zinnias and calendula get

(08:11):
the shallow ones. I plant more than I should, more
than I'll have space for, but the abundance can be shared with
friends and neighbors, just as they do with their seedlings.
But let us Seeds are like dust, so fine I have to pinch them

(08:32):
carefully, trying not to lose any.
I scatter a few extras, knowing I'll thin them out if needed.
I continue on enjoying each repeated step, looking forward
to using my tiny watering can tokeep them fed and happy while I

(08:55):
wait starting seeds. I've been out for a morning walk
on the trail that reaches the beach.
I took a few breaths to match the waves strolling in and out

(09:18):
before heading back home. As I came up to my neighbor's
place, I saw that she was out ather garden shed, all set up at
her outdoor table to plant seedsto start growing inside.
I'd stopped in to say hello and after chatting for a few minutes

(09:42):
about the weather and how excited we were about how the
gardens will soon be coming to life again, she had given me her
extra egg curtains to do some seed planting of my own.
She'd also offered me some extraseeds that she had more than

(10:04):
enough of for her own use. It's still fairly early as I
arrive home and I like it that way.
My shoulders drop in relaxation knowing that a bit of my day is
now planned out. I had already prepped for this

(10:25):
day by getting bags of potting soil and collecting newspapers
from my parents to contain the mess I'm bound to make during
this process. I think my backyard patio and
table are the perfect spot to host my seed planting this

(10:48):
spring. Sun is still mild enough that I
don't need to hide under the patio umbrella, which hasn't yet
been brought out for the season.For starters, I cover the
outdoor table with the newspaper, layering sheets until
the whole surface is filled withstories.

(11:12):
I giggle. I had a few of my favorite comic
strips that have been around since before I was born.
You know, the one about the cat who hates Mondays and loves
lasagna? The crossword puzzles are
impressively complete. Some pages have partial rings

(11:35):
from coffee cups, and one page is missing a window of space
where they'd cut out something interesting.
It seems to have been a recipe from their favorite column.
I wonder what it was and if theytried it yet.
I head back into the kitchen where the rest of my seed

(11:58):
packets are in the buffet drawerwith the matches and tea lights.
Some are store bought, folded intheir glossy paper with bright
pictures on the front and much appreciated directions on the
back. Others are saved in envelopes

(12:20):
I'd sealed and written on last fall.
Butternut squash that had grown up a wooden ladder against the
fence, sugar snap peas that had done well on the patio in big
pots and pumpkins, which yieldedenough for Jack O lanterns and a

(12:42):
few pies around Thanksgiving. As good as growing my own plants
right from seed fields, saving seeds from those plants and
using them the following year feels even better.
Some of the trees are the egg curtains from my neighbor with

(13:05):
perfectly sized cells waiting tobe reused.
I'm all for wearing gardening gloves at times, but today I get
my fingers dark with soil, knowing I can scrub them off
later. I fill each space in the

(13:25):
curtains with potting mix. The smell of the damp earth
rising upwards, noticing the quiet sounds that accompany me
is all part of the experience. The soft crinkle of the bag that
holds the soil, my hands crumbling the bigger chunks that

(13:48):
drop into the curtains and trays, and the birds never far
away, probably eyeing the black seeds beside me that will turn
into sunflowers throughout the summer.
I remember with the peas to soakthem in some water for a few

(14:08):
days first, so I get their traysready, but the soil will have to
wait while the peas begin to sprout their tiny tails.
Once a tray is filled with enough soil, I place a packet of
seeds beside it to mark which ones will be filled with what.

(14:32):
The butternut squash is first because it's the one I'm most
proud of. I haven't bought seeds for these
in years because the crop alwaysdoes well and I can save so many
of the seeds for the following spring.
I like the size of the seeds. They're easy to handle and

(14:56):
difficult to lose between your fingers or be taken by a sudden
gust of wind. I place the seed into each cell
as gently as putting a sleeping puppy into their bed, whispering
to them in my mind. See you soon, little ones.

(15:20):
I scoop more soil up into my hands to cover them just enough
to keep them safe, not worrying about the dirt that spills over
the sides as the paper will helpme gather it all to be used in
the final trays. I plant the pumpkins the same

(15:41):
way, and then the ever dependable green beans.
They seem to grow no matter what, as long as I pay a little
attention to them. Some of the other packets are
less familiar, so I'll need to pay closer attention to the
instructions jotted on the backs.

(16:05):
I picked them up from the seed exchange at the library.
The brown envelopes with handwriting in all capital
letters or beautiful cursive. At one of the cafes, they'd left
a box of seed packets near the napkin dispensers.

(16:26):
I took a few while waiting for my drink, drawn to names like
Calendula and Purple Carrot. Those go in to different trays.
The zinnias and calendula get the shallow ones.
I plant more than I should, morethan I'll have space for, but

(16:48):
the abundance can be shared withfriends and neighbors just as
they do with their seedlings. The lettuce seeds are like dust,
so fine I have to pinch them carefully, trying not to lose
any. I scatter a few extras, knowing

(17:09):
I'll thin them out if needed. I continue on enjoying each
repeated step, looking forward to using my tiny watering can to
keep them fed and happy while I wait.
I wish you sweet dreams.