One Thousand Gifts: My Garden

The grey winter days made us ambitious.  Maybe a little too much that way.  We dreamed of a huge garden, with all sorts of vegetables.  We dreamed of canning, drying, and making our own “spice mixes”.  We ordered any seed we thought we might use, and dreamed and designed huge garden plans.

And then reality set in.  We’d need more dirt, more space, and more time.  20’x40’ our first year out?  We were crazy.  But we didn’t give up the dream.


We settled on a nice raised bed, 16’ x 16’.  We were amazed as God provided the perfect amount of top soil, and for a great price.  We prepared and got everything ready, we drew up new plans and scaled back on numbers.  And now, we’ve started to plant. 

There’s still much work to be done.  More planting to do.  Watering and weeding and bug picking to plan out.  And then the comes the gathering and preserving.  Yet, it’s work I love to do.  Yes, I love to feel my fingers in the soil, to watch anxiously as my little plants grow.  To care for them and nourish them…to protect them. 

What stuns me most is that God cares for us that way…and then some.  He’s a more dedicated, faithful, and loving Gardener than I could ever hope to be.  Yet, somehow, when I see my little seedlings sprout, I understand just a little bit more about the Mystery that He is. 

281. A spot and land to start the garden of my dreams.
282. A husband who works tirelessly to help me achieve those dreams.
283. A small glimpse of God each time I walk in my garden.
284. His provision.
285. Friends who are always encouraging and faithful, and who I can count on with this baby coming.
286. Watching my belly grow more-and-more each day.
287. Feeling my little son kick me night and day.
288. Knowing that in just a few more months, he’ll be in my arms.
289. Consignment sales and new maternity clothes.
290. Ice cream sundaes on warm, Sunday afternoons.