Even though our garden has been the subject of an earlier blog (remember the squash growing through the fence?), truth be told I have never been what you would call an avid gardener. I do most of the planting of the seeds and make the frames for our pole beans to grow on. I will help water when needed, sometimes at 6:00 in the morning because I heard somewhere that early morning is the best time to water. It wakes the plants up.

But mostly, I get it going and let my wife and daughter take it from there.

This year, however, I am finding myself more interested.

Enthusiastic Gardener

I was fascinated by how quickly the radishes came up. I checked to see how many bean plants came up from morning to evening on one of those hot days when things just pop up and out all over the place. I am disappointed that I just can’t seem to get green onions to grow, even in what should be ideal conditions. I am already looking forward to grilling a fresh zucchini.

I am not sure why I am more interested this year. It is the first year that we can take full advantage of the 2400-liter capacity for rainwater harvesting we have under our deck. That has been exciting project. I am hoping to add a pump, though filling the pails and using a watering can seems more…intimate.

Maybe the kind of winter we had has given me a greater appreciation for spring and the anticipation of summer.

Slowing down

Actually, I think some of the discouragement that has come from world events, and that I am dealing with in my own life, has made me yearn for examples of God’s faithfulness and the miracle of new life in whatever form it comes is part of that.

I am reminded of the familiar hymn—“summer and winter and springtime and harvest…Great is thy faithfulness.” There is something immensely comforting in the rhythm of the seasons.

One of my favourite singer/songwriters, Paul Simon puts his own spin on this. In the song, “Outrageous,” he lists a number of things that he sees as outrageous in our society, some of which have to do with how much time we spend trying to look good. We exercise fanatically and take mud baths for example, but then he asks the question repeatedly, “Who’s gonna love you when your looks are gone?”

The rhythm and melody of the song is somewhat driven, something like the frantic pace of life in our society. Then it softens and slows and the answer comes—“God will, like he waters the flowers on your window sill.”

Great is thy faithfulness.

Seeking and Finding

Our theme song this year, “Thrive” says we are like trees planted by streams of water. Another beautiful image of God’s faithfulness in growing things.

I hope much of what we do at ACS helps us to see God all around us. That is what we try to do. Though in the busyness of ending this year well and making plans for next year, it can be easy to lose sight of that.

But we see God’s faithfulness in a kind word overheard on the playground, in filling staff vacancies in a very competitive market and in a small beansprout pushing its way out of the soil.

Great is thy faithfulness.