Growing a Garden

With the rising costs of food, and the rising costs of gas I have decided to start a new adventure of growing a garden. I have nine plants I have planted to start with. So far two of them have some vegitables growing. Others have flowers, so it looks like they may produce some vegitables.

I never realized how much time and effort goes into growing a garden. Getting the soil ready was so hard. My back yard has a lot of clay and rock. So I had to find a place to put my garden that would not have so much of that, but have soil that would allow my plants to take root and grow. Using the tiller was alot of hard work on my arms. I had a lot of blood, sweat and tears go into getting the soil ready. Looking back that is how I feel when I start out a new class. They all need to have some time put into them. They are not ready to receive the holy spirit but through the blood, sweat and tears that I put into the classes through preparation and through teaching I am getting them ready to receive the seed that the holy spirit so it can grow.

Then I had to plant the plants. I had to dig a hole that is deep enough for the roots to take, but shallow enough that the plant can continue to grow towards the sky and the sun. That was was difficult because I wanted to just do it myself, but had my son help me. I learned patience with that. He wanted to help, he wanted to be apart of the garden. I knew that I could do it by myself and get it done faster, but the pride in his face for doing it with me was worth the time put into it. I taught him how to plant the flowers. We talked about them growing. We talked about different things. It was a great time working with him to get the garden ready. Taking a step back I need to do this with my class. As much as I just want to do things myself because it will be faster, I need to enjoy the time it takes for them to help me out, and use it as a learning experience. Watch there roots start to find a place to stay and them blossom into beautiful young men and woman.

Remembering to water the plants every day is proving to be a challenge. Sometimes it rains and I have nothig to do, other days I have to remember to water the garden. And learning that there are better times in the day to water the garden was a hard lesson to learn. It is easier to do it during the middle of the day when we are playing outside but it is not always the best time to do it. Being patient and knowing that by waiting to the right time the plants will get the most out of the water I provide is a hard lesson to learn. Same with my class and children. There are times that they are going to soak up all of the knowledge I put in front of them, there are other times when it is just not a good time. Being patient is the best way to teach and have your words and lessons be heard.

Waiting is what we are doing right now. We have to wait until the vegitables are ready before we pick them. Seeing the little buds start to grow, watching what they are turning into is exciting, but waiting is hard to do. I want to pick them now but they are not ready. Same with my children. I need to step back and watch them grow. Wait, it will happen, and the rewards will be great. Same as with my class. I may not see the results in the year, but I need to know in my heart that I have made there garden ready, know that I have planted and taken care of the seed, and trust that it will blossom into something beautiful.