On Gardening

I like flowers. I've always liked flowers and always wanted to have them around. What I didn't like was the idea of gardening. Gardening meant weeding and caring for plants. It meant more work. Blah!
When we built our porch I decided we needed some gardens to make it a cozy, happy place to spend time. I planted some Gerbera Daisies, some Day Lilies, a Stargazer Lily and a bushy plant that looked like daises, but I think it was called something else. It was awesome, but it was work. Last year I decided that I liked having the flowers enough to try to grow some food. My strawberries and peppers didn't work out super well, but my basil was awesome.
Since my food venture didn't work out as well as I hoped I was nervous about having a vegetable garden, but knew I really wanted to do it. I took this free class at the library called "Grow It; Eat It." It was a good basic class and gave me the confidence to make my own garden. I also learned that you are not supposed to hardest strawberries the first year, so that made me feel better about last year's efforts. My budget was not super big this year, so I wasn't sure I'd be able to do flowers, but Jay found this deal where he got 100 bulbs for $10. I planted them in late spring and the first bud is showing today. For my veggie garden I had to build up a level spot in our back yard since that is our Southern side, but it's all hill. Luckily I was able to use stuff I had around the yard to build most of it. I even had bags of soil left over from another project. As if I weren't blessed enough already a friend offered me a bunch of seeds- for free! She had extra. Then a new friend and fellow first time gardener brought two of her lettuce plants to church for me a few weeks ago. What a beautiful surprise! The seeds have started growing and I have this beautiful garden that will eventually provide food for my family. I can hardly believe how God is providing for me in this time. It's amazing.
Bear with me for a minute while I try to explain something else that may not seem related at first. Through another kindness of the Lord I was able to go on our church's women's retreat this year. The main theme was spending time with God. It happens to go right along with the Discipleship course I'm doing right now, but that's a bit off topic. During the retreat one of the speakers talked about spending time with God just listening. She talked about how sitting quietly works well for her, but one of her friends finds she is better able to listen when her body is moving in a way she doesn't have to think about- like riding a bike on a trail. As I was pulling weeds a few weeks ago this strange thing happened- it all made sense. I was doing a pretty mindless task surrounded by all this beauty of God's creation and I felt this great peace. When I sit quietly in my house I rarely feel peace. I'm constantly thinking about all the things(read: housework) I should be doing or the kids' noises distract me. Outside the noises of the kids playing on the play set or running around the yard just fit into the tranquil outdoor atmosphere. I'm able to enjoy my gardening even more as I enjoy quiet (if not quiet, at least peaceful) time with God. Soon we will be enjoying the pesticide free bounty He has provided for us and I'm so excited about all of it. This year I'm actually starting to enjoy the *whole* gardening experience.