Garden Thoughts...

I have a "She Shed" in my garden where I can sit and enjoy the beauty of the world around me as it beckons my heart in measures of a splendid symphony. The summer breeze whistles gently through the pine and fir trees, while birds call out to each other in their musical tones of cheer. I hear my baby chicks happily "cheeping" as they explore the new world around them. Butterflies dance merrily among the blooms, while the crickets chirp happily in the shadows.  Hummingbirds buzz around as if their life depends on every drop of sugary fluid. A symphony without a conductor, and the only audience is me! 

I could sit in my garden all day and just soak in the beauty around me.

Oh... if only I could do just that!!

While I would love to, I can’t just sit here forever and enjoy the beauty, because so much work needs to be done!   

Constant tending and care to every aspect of the garden, and there never is a time when it is all done.  

When I can, it is nice to take a moment in my little She Shed and watch the world around me in wonder. It recharges my "batteries" and gives me time to pray, ponder and think! 

I've created a happy space filled with beautiful things - most of them gifted to me, or thrifted from local thrift stores or garage/yard sales.  Many are mismatched, with imperfections. Just like me!


 

My collections are eclectic and I'm mostly drawn to the imperfect, broken, cracked, and no longer useful dishes. I find them a place of importance in my little She Shed or garden where their beauty mingles with my collection and becomes beautiful again. 

I never cease to be thankful for this little sweet space of mine where I can pray, dream, relax, and enjoy the beauty of God's precious creation! 

But, I can't linger here too long! Berries need to be harvested daily now, and spinach and lettuce need to be picked.  Weeds grow in abundant profusion. Tiny bugs whittle away at the plants in their fight for survival. It becomes a fight to the bitter end with each weed that pops its head up and then finds itself at the end of my hoe, only for me to find it days later growing anew with roots that never seem to die. 

As I battle each day with the forces of nature that threaten the very existence of the tiny plants that I started as seedlings, sometimes weariness fills my soul.  Will the battle ever end? Is there ever a victory in sight? I’m sure every gardener has felt the same despair. It seems that for every weed I pull, twenty more replace it.  The fight for survival in the garden is a weary one.  

And then the constant foe that I have faced this year has become the ground squirrels. As you can see here in this picture, there is a squirrel watching me as I take the picture, while it is eating out of the chicken food bowl! We have tried a multitude of different things, but this year - none of them are working that great. I think we managed to kill some, but more keep coming. 

Relentless in their destruction, these squirrels have eaten berries, lettuce, basil, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, hot peppers, and peas, and continue to relentlessly eat my chicken's food. Currently, I am using baking soda mixed with cornmeal and chicken feed, as I've learned that baking soda causes a natural death for them. I've definitely seen a reduction in their population, but as you can see - they just keep coming! 

 

Tending a garden is tedious, yet rewarding work. While it is never-ending, and constantly a battle for survival, the joys at harvest time spur me on.

My blooming clematis

As I work in my garden each day, I dream of a garden without any foes, without any weeds, and without any insects or predators.  Then I begin to ponder what it was like in the Garden of Eden that was planted by God just for Adam and Eve to enjoy, and wonder if they even realized how blessed they were to have this beautiful garden planted by the Lord just for them to enjoy.  There was no watering to do, for the ground was watered from the mist that came up from the earth.  Can you even imagine the wondrous beauty of this garden planted by the Lord himself? Exodus 2:8 “And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden and there he put the man whom he had formed.” 

Yet even in this beautiful garden, there was work to be done.  Exodus 2:15 And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and keep it.” Such an incredible task that must have been to be in the garden the Lord planted.  The Lord had then placed a river with four forks to run through the garden, and the rivers carried gold, bdellium and oxyx stone… can you imagine the sparkles of beauty that must have been in this garden!

And then of course we read on and find that the beautiful garden of Eden was closed up forever after the fruit of the tree of life was eaten.  Because of disobedience, the Lord God put a curse upon the ground, in Exodus 3:17 “…Because thou has harkened unto the voice of thy wife and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee saying, Thou shalt not eat of it, cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread till thou return to the ground; for out of it thou was taken, for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”  Vs 23 says “therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground whence he was taken.”

So we find that sad story in the garden of Eden, a place of untold measures of beauty and delight, changed forever by the sin of Adam and Eve, and now the ground is cursed with thorns and thistles and must be tilled in sweat and tears. 

As I ponder the story of the garden of Eden, and I work in my garden with the hoe, the rake, and the tiller, I know that I cannot change the curse on the ground I work. Thorns and thistles will never give up or give in.  It continues to be a fight and a battle of wills that began in the most beautiful garden the world has ever seen.

I long for the return of the Garden of Eden, for that day when the curse on the ground will be lifted, and thorns and thistles will win their battle no more.  For it says in Isaiah 11:9 “They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.”  I find hope and comfort in the chapter of Isaiah 11 which speaks of a time that is to come when we will no longer fight the soil to produce, when there will be no more predators upon the earth, and when the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord. 

My harvest of garlic scapes!

But until that day comes, I will continue the battle here in the garden. The insects, the weeds, the disease, the predators, the quirks of nature… they will all continue to be forces we must deal with… for now.  So… I will enjoy the beauty of each day, and be thankful for the harvest that I am able to gather and continue to be amazed at the beauty of the world around me while knowing that someday, an even better day is coming. 

Living here in north Idaho, it is hard to imagine a world with more beauty than what I see and explore every day. I’m grateful for the towering mountain ranges, for the playful shadows that race across the tips of the pines. I’m thankful for every beautiful wildflower that grows in difficult soil. I’m thankful for the birds that sing so sweetly in the treetops, for the gentle breeze of the wind as it sings glorious melodies in the treetops.  I’m grateful for all the beauty I am able to enjoy now, and within my heart, there sings a melody that is rich and true… someday all the difficult parts of this beauty I enjoy will be forever changed, and that gives me hope to keep on working in my garden.  My hope endures for eternity!   

Speaking of rest - this little one loves dangling from his perch and napping! 

It was time to harvest my garlic scapes.  Garlic scapes grow out of hard-neck garlic and can be used in many different ways. 

I chose to slice them, then mince them in the food processor and dehydrate them. 

After dehydrating, I put them in the food processor until a powder formed. I will use this as garlic powder, and the stems will be used as seasoning in soups and stews. 

Last weekend we were experiencing a heat wave here with temps past 100+.  We planned to spend the day at Priest Lake, and what a wonderful day we had! 

Sigh... I can't wait for us to go back again, and enjoy these beautiful cool waters of Priest Lake! 

Well, I must close for now, I will leave you with a beautiful worship experience with a new video that I created last week. The water pictured in this video is from some of our rivers, lakes, and streams.  I pray it is a blessing to you! 

And remember - no matter how dark and difficult present circumstances may seem - we have an eternal hope that carries us through the days we live in. 

Much love to all of you!