The Miracle of Gardening

A gardener should, at the very least, take a walk though the garden daily. When the fruit and vegetable harvest starts coming in the flower garden gets a little neglected. It’s always a relief to wash that last pot and duck outside among the blooms for a little deadheading.

Yesterday I cut back yarrow, trimmed spent blooms from the balloon flowers and weeded along the alley. I also checked for potato bugs, watered potted plants, picked up the trash thrown from car windows and inspected the general health of the garden overall. I’ve found that if a gardener catches a problem early it can usually be reversed.

Bee Balm

I have several places where I can stop and sit for a spell. While I’m relaxing, I take in the wonder of Nature and contemplate the immensity of the mind that created such diversity of beauty. I also become more conscious the burden of caring for that creation. The Earth can certainly survive without the benefit of humans, but we cannot physically survive without the Earth.

He next logical thought would be this: why are we so hell bent on destroying the very environment that sustains us? Is it because we’re thoughtless? Is it lack of education? Is it ego, because we think we can do things so much better than the Creator? Is it laziness? Are we spoiled and self-indulgent children that haven’t yet learned responsibility? Do we feel so worthless and ugly that we need to make our surroundings match? Did the devil make us do it?

Maybe it’s a bit of all of the above. My brain is way too small to figure out solutions to such a huge problem. I do know one thing, however. If we don’t wake up soon and take positive action, the Earth that nourishes our bodies and spirits will be unable to provide sustenance. So, what kind of positive action can we take?

It seems best to start where we are. To begin on our own little patch; whether “rented” or “owned,” it makes no difference. Common sense will tell us no one “owns” anything anyway; not land or even our bodies. We come here from the spirit realm and leave after an allotted time. So what is the point? It must be that our thoughts and subsequent actions are important. Important to what? It has to be spiritual growth.

Kitties in the Garden

Spiritual growth must be the answer, the ultimate goal. I am uplifted every time I plant a seed. Seeds are truly miraculous. Within it is the future. I am truly satisfied and fulfilled and joyful when I later consider the plant that came from that seed. I may eat it or simply enjoy its beauty. So many of us have lost that connection to that seed and the dirt in which grows. We’re lost and don’t know how to get back home.

Plant a seed. Plant it in a pot in the window if that’s your only option. Connect up with the gardener down the street, offer your help. See if there’s a community garden close by. Get at least some of your food from a local farmer who doesn’t poison the land. If you have a little sunny spot, grow a tomato plant. Clean up after yourself and others who are asleep and wish them blessings. Share what you grow and come alive to the miracle of life that pulses and vibrates and energizes.

Live.