Thank-you Catharine for agreeing to guest post about the evolution of our amazing gardens! Read below for her wonderful post:
Several years back, a dear friend of mine helped me build a bike. A super-cool, single-speed road bike perfect for darting up and down Philly streets, made from mismatched and donated parts. At the time, my bike-building friend told me how much he liked working with bicycles because they provided tangible products of his labor. He enjoyed taking discarded parts and making a solid working bike. So nice to be able to fix something in a matter of a few hours. How many things, in life and in work, can be fixed in a matter of hours?
In my work, I don’t always easily see the effects of what I do. I work with people, and that work can be messy. At times, it’s the most rewarding work in the world. Other times, it feels like drudgery. People are unpredictable; we have set-backs, and oftentimes our growth is imperceptible.
However, the labor of growing a garden offers almost immediate, definitely perceptible, reward. I mean, have you ever grown plants from seed? It’s like Christmas morning EVERY DAY as the seedlings pop out of the dirt and grow noticeably taller each day. In the same way that my friend found relief and reward in building bikes, so I have found growing a garden.
Last summer was a hard one. I worked long hours, lost sleep, cried some tears, and struggled to make it through the day more often than not. (Don’t feel too bad for me- I still managed to get in some beach trips, bike rides, and walks to Toscanini's, and JP Licks and Christina's. Yes, there was lots of ice cream). Last summer I also started gardening. I invested in pots and dirt and lots of seedlings: tomatoes, cucumbers, kale, basil, lavender, mint, and cilantro. I watered them and watched them grow, and even ate some of my harvested produce. Gardening gave me an outlet. When work and life felt somewhat fruitless, I watered plants that produced beautiful, tasty, and nourishing fruit.
This year, I’ve gone way bigger on the gardening scale, thanks to more outdoor space, a local garden market, and more confidence after last year’s successes. This year, I grew plants from seed and built a raised bed and even started composting. This year it’s lettuces, beets, carrots, peppers, tomatoes, squash, cucumber, rosemary, dill, brussels sprouts, basil, mint, lavender, beans, strawberries, sage, and thyme. And LOTS of sunflowers and morning glories, because they make me happy.
My mom helped me build a raised bed with scrap wood from her basement (okay, let’s be real- I helped her while she took the lead). My mom’s amazing- she also spent several days digging up big rocks and old slate roof tiles and huge roots to get the ground ready for gardening. My friend gave me some of her extra seeds, which is how my crop selection multiplied as much as it did. I eagerly sowed way too many seeds, so I’ve been able to give seedlings away to my sister and friends. (I still have 5 squash plants, 2 tomato plants, 4 basil plants, and 1 morning glory available to a good home!) My roommates have cheered me on and admired the baby plants, even taken pictures of them (thanks, Kate!). And we’re all excited to eat the goodies that come out of these efforts!
I’m hopeful that this summer will be better than last. But either way, I’m grateful for a garden. I get to work with my hands, get dirty, tend to something daily (or, almost daily), receive the favors of friends and family, watch things grow, and hopefully harvest some yummy food.