Growth

Last one, babies! Last one on the list. We can do this. Let’s go.

One of the best parts about having a garden is watching it change–the changes within a season and the changes from season to season. Before Bryan and I were married I suggested, “hey, let’s rototill one side of the backyard and make it a full vegetable garden.” The look on his face was abject horror. WHAT?! No? Hmmm. Regroup. Goal–backyard garden. Method–slow, incremental change. “Hey Bryan, could we plant one jalapeno pepper plant and this dill plant we got from the grocery store?” Yes.

Excellent. Baby steps.

Growth that is well-paced, managable and semi-controlled is really nice. Life works that way only sometimes, though. Other times it’s chaos and tragedy and curveballs. Growth happens that way too–with me kicking, screaming, and sobbing the whole damn time.

I was maybe eight or nine. The pain in my legs was beyond anything I’d ever experienced before. My big brother was running to get hot, wet towels to put on them. I was sobbing. Why did it have to hurt so much? I’ll never forget those growing pains. I’ll never forget these. I’m thankful I got taller. Finding gratitude now is a lot more difficult and maybe more essential.

Growth I’m thankful for–I can do hard things; I can trust my intuition; I can find joy on the dark side of the moon and still talk about it.

[Virtual tip jar: https://venmo.com/u/Rebecca-Lubbers-1]