Pillar – Gardening is useful, it brings people in touch with nature

Posted on Friday, September 2, 2022 at 8:48 pm

By Myrtle Thompson

In these days when many things require a chip to function properly, there is one thing that is not essential. The yard is a garden.

The vote for a chip is an overwhelming yes to almost everything, but it can’t replace the satisfaction of our achievements in the “hands-on” work necessary for growing things. Nothing can replace the experience and taste of having beautiful flowers or ripe tomatoes and cucumbers.

For this and many other reasons, I’m all for gardening, even in small areas. It is there that the owners or owners themselves become the “chip” that performs the necessary work. They have the opportunity to be creative, teach children values ​​they might not learn in other ways, and may even see the neighborhood as a better way of life. Seeing the end result will surely be a pleasure.

Gardening values ​​are endless. It is a way to increase our sensitivity to what is happening around us, to sight, smell and sound. Any neglected front or yard area can be transformed into something of beauty or value by displaying flowers or vegetables or both.

A beginner does not need expensive tools. A shovel and a hoe or rake are the basic necessities. Other than that, two hands, a willingness to get dirty, maybe put up with some sore muscles that need exercise, and a love for God’s creations are all that’s needed for beginners.

A good comparison might be like the old days when the three-R’s were first mastered. We learned more and as our understanding grew, more was required.

The rewards of gardening are fresh air, outdoor exercise, understanding God’s creation, and the joy of being our own CEO. I hope that the younger generation will not stop finding satisfaction in gardening, even when there are setbacks, as sometimes happens due to weather or other reasons. Some of our best lessons in life are learned when we relive the events that caused our problems.

All this is not to say that microchips are not valuable assets in our lives. Although they sometimes fail, they provide a way to communicate and make our lives easier. Recently, a neighbor couldn’t get into his garage. The chip it depends on to open it was not working. A little help was needed – a new unused battery. I was outside, saw what was going on and suggested a new set of batteries which solved the problem.

Just like gardens need people, neighbors need each other, not to make our lives easier, but to make them better. The tranquility of the garden – a quiet life without anger and threats – strongly helps our emotional life. Being outside in the garden we create will bring satisfaction to see life take on a whole new picture and meaning.

I like to say, “I found God in a garden, not in Eden, but in my own backyard.” There I saw how God, the great creator, taught some lessons.

A small bee is an example. He knows where to look for nectar and what to do with it. All we know is how to extract and enjoy it.

I thought they were dead when a few stripworms ate my parsley and disappeared. Instead, I found a chrysalis from which a butterfly emerged, a lesson about death and resurrection. Look at Jesus’ words in John 11:25. He said: “I am the resurrection and the life, no one comes to the Father but Me.”

God has given us the privilege of seeing some of His creative powers as they were when He first created Eden. Some of this beauty can still be found in the garden. Happy gardening, everyone!

Myrtle V. Thompson, 94, is a Bible teacher, educator, writer, and author of Living in the Villages and Visiting the Palaces, available on Amazon.com. Look for her new book of gardening experiences this fall.