PLANTING SEEDS PARENTING the never-ending noise. And it all happens again and again and again. Would you do it? Would you garden if you knew everything that went into it when you first started?
LOUELLA MARTIN & Nadine the Cow
How does a seed become a plant – a flower? It is really nothing short of a miracle, mostly performed in the dark, where no one can see. Much of gardening is really an act of faith. We fling the seeds into the soil, cover them up tenderly, pray for rain and hover closely waiting and watching for the first shoots to pop through. Would you garden if you knew everything that went into it when you first started? The careful watching and wondering, the weeding, the hoeing, the watering, the harvesting. And you do it all again and again and again. Would you do it? How does a baby become a child – an adult? How really does it happen? Much of parenting is really an act of faith. We tend to our fragile little babies so carefully, rock them, feed them, cuddle them, watching and worrying over them. Yet in a sense, it is a lot like flinging seeds into the soil, praying over them, and hovering closely. For how long? Years? Would you choose to become a parent if you knew everything that went into it when you first started? The careful tending of helpless life, the sleepless nights, the messes, the crying, the toddler meltdowns, the shrill voices, 10
Oh, but have you ever tasted fresh peas, straight off the vines? Carrots with the dirt hastily brushed off? Sun-ripened tomatoes still warm? (OK ,well I don’t actually like tomatoes but fresh strawberries??!). Have you ever straightened your aching back after an hour of weeding and hoeing, picking and watering, and looked around yourself and thought, “This grew under my care. I planted, God grew, I’m harvesting this bounty.” Would you do it? Would you choose to become a parent if you knew everything that went into it when you first started? Oh, but have you ever had little hands wrapped around your neck, experienced the joy of first smiles, first steps, first words, small hands tucked into yours? Have you ever gone on a walk with a small child and really listened to them and have seen the world through their eyes? How does a baby become a child – an adult? How really does it happen? It is really nothing short of a miracle. We have a long way to go before our first child nears adulthood but we’ve only blinked a couple of times and she’s already almost five. Would you do it? I know my answer! LOUELLA MARTIN Azure Highlands Family Homestead Markdale, ON azurehighlandshomestead@gmail.com Louella lives on a small regenerative farm with her husband and two children. Besides writing, she loves farming and raising high quality meat products from well raised animals. She can be found at their farm, probably outside somewhere. Find more information by going to their website, www.azurehighlandshomestead.com
HELLO COUNTRY MAGAZINE
