Friday, April 23, 2010

My Un-Green Thumb

Well, I'm thinking of trying my hand at gardening this year. We've had a fun start, me & the kids: pulling/digging weeds, planting bulbs (47 in one afternoon) and watering the new plants...well, I use "watering" loosely, as E&E have actually been using the watering can as their personal swimming hole. They have been sharing the love with mommy too, bringing water to my legs and neck and smearing it on...I told them I'll just pretend I'm at the beach. :) Anyway, Ethan loves to push the wheelbarrow that's "just his size" - and it holds all of the kids' garden tools and any toys that happen to join us.

My little helpers' garden tools

The thought of gardening is so exciting to me! I love, love, love flowers. My un-green thumb, however, has sabotaged many gardening ventures till now. Most of my past attempts at keeping green things alive have been blunders, flops, failures...but I'm optimistic. (Thanks to some hardy perennials in our landscaping beds, planted 2 years ago and still going strong.) With those as a visual pat-on-the-back, I'm determined to try again with a new philosophy - God makes things grow, not me. Yes, I will have to put in a little effort for planting and tending (which I'll hopefully remember...maybe if I set a daily/weekly reminder on my phone?) But it's really not about me or my abilities at all. (Thank goodness.)

Our landscaping bed...my visual "pat-on-the-back" :)

Hopefully, in the next few weeks, we'll see several lilies (Strawberry Fields Forever, Stargazer and Oriental "Lake Carey"), Gladiolus, Lily of the Valley, Cannas, Aquilegia (hummingbird flowers), "Lucky Number" Dahlias, and Freesias start to bloom. We've been enjoying Clematis, Rhododendron, and Creeping Phlox for a few weeks now. Even my Azaleas are starting to show some color. So exciting! Here are some pics of my pretty blooms:


I'm feeling successful so far. Soooo, at some point, I'm even hoping to try out a strawberry plant and a few vegetables too...maybe square-foot gardening. Will it work out??? Like I said, I'm optimistic.

On that note, I believe that my optimism (aka hope) is part of why this whole gardening process appeals to me (a self-professed control freak). It allows me to experience faith, because I CAN'T CONTROL IT! I can hope for it, and I can take it so far, but only God can make the flowers bloom. And that gives me peace somehow.

Reflection...
I am so glad to see God's amazing creation and watch Him sustain life on our planet. Each new bloom is a miracle of life! I am doubly blessed to be able to share this beauty with my own little miracles...our small garden is providing yet another opportunity to teach them about God's design, and about our responsibility in caring for His creation. And as we watch our garden bloom, I get to watch my babies bloom too!

My children are my own little seedlings, and while I hope on their behalf and tend them as best I can, it will be God who makes them bloom. I am encouraged by Philippians 1:6, which says, "...he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." And as I work with the soil, my faith is being strengthened for my daily task as a mother, because I am not the one in control. And, again, that gives me peace.

2 comments:

Gina said...

I so didn't know you blogged! Glad I found it. :) Good luck with the gardening.

Bobby Smith said...

Your blog just said exactly how I feel about gardening! I so wish I was born with the natural ability for planting and helping things grown, but I too am optimist that it can happen! Hopefully regardless of how terrible a gardener I am God will make it all grow! Hope we are both pleasantly surprised with our little gardens! (p.s. we just planted our veggie garden today! :) very exciting!
Love you!

Melissa Smith