Day 16: Earthly

Sadly this is the extent of my current garden - well, that plus the winterized strawberry plants in the garage that I hope will come back to life the way they are supposed to.  Last summer was the first time that I put in the time and effort to have a garden, it was extremely rewarding!  Not only was the food organic and delicious, but the practice of gardening was so calming - almost like prayer or meditation.  The thoughtful preparation of the garden, the quiet routine of caring for the plants, and the excitement of watching them grow all amounted to an experience that made me feel reconnected to the Earth, to the cycle of life, to creation (and I definitely enjoyed the benefit of yummy fruits and veggies in my back yard!)

I can't wait for Spring, for the renewal of the Earth.  I enjoy winter for about a month and then I'm over it!  It's only the last day of February and I'm already itching to start landscaping and planting the new garden.  I'm also really excited because I can make permanent garden plans this time around - no digging it all up and moving it across the state this year! :-)

The dark, cold, slop of February makes it hard to appreciate the natural beauty that we live in.  The small miracle of watching a broccoli seed sprout and grow into an enormous plant (before last year I had no idea how big broccoli plants were!) is just the tip of the iceberg of Earth's wonders.  While I do believe in micro-evolution - I feel like you can't help but believe in a higher power and creation when you truly appreciate the world around you.  We have a responsibility to love and care for the Earth, and we have done a fairly poor job as of late - I believe that repairing that relationship will bring us all a greater sense of spiritual peace.

Genesis 1

²⁸ Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”

²⁹ Then God said, “Look! I have given you every seed-bearing plant throughout the earth and all the fruit trees for your food. ³⁰ And I have given every green plant as food for all the wild animals, the birds in the sky, and the small animals that scurry along the ground—everything that has life.” And that is what happened.