Get Dirty

Weather has finally made the shift to Spring here. I suspect we will have a few short days of it before summer slams furiously into us. I love Tennessee weather because we usually get all four seasons, but spring and fall seem to come and go too quickly. None the less, the warmer days are here, and I made good progress in the garden today.

Breaking the ground at first hint of growing season is my do over. The earth is my canvas and I get to paint it, and repaint it, as many times as I wish. It’s a lot of trial and it’s a lot of error. Gardening is like Etch a Sketch. You can draw and scribble and if your picture doesn’t turn into the Picasso you had envisioned then you can erase it and start again.

I call it dirt therapy. I am sure there is an official therapy guide on the subject, but I am not studied on it; I make it up as I go. Handling the dirt is cold between my hands and it gives a welcomed relief to the heat of the heavy blanketed sun and my very tired soul.

Yesterday was not about sowing though. It was all about preparing the soil and getting it ready for planting. By yesterday’s end, I wore my preparations like a cloak of honor. I was soaked in sweat. My back and swollen knees felt the pains of pushing and pulling at the earth. Dirt rooted under my fingernails and toenails and clung to my kneecaps under the pressure of kneeling and crawling. Tassels of sweaty hair stuck to my face and dripped like a leaky faucet. Sunshine kissed every inch of my exposed skin. I was tired but the soil was ready and I was left hanging onto the expectation of a new planting season with the last piece of strength I had in me.

Preparing for and expecting something can be the best and the worst of emotions. As I kid, I remember expecting our summer camping trips. Waiting was the worst but when summer arrived and my folks loaded up the truck with our tents and coolers, we knew the wait was over and that good times were soon to ensue. Similar feelings overwhelm me when I garden. I spend a lot of time preparing and dreaming of my harvest. Waiting. Waiting…until finally I see a glimpse of green peeking through the soil, and I know that new life has sprouted.

As I tug at the dirt, fertilize my soil to get it just right, and plan my planting rows according to the companion growing guide, I think about preparing and sowing of another kind. Growing, weeding, pruning, and harvesting is also akin to life.

I am in a transition year. I am in between something I was and something I pray to be. When I say I am in a transition period, I mean for real. Physically. And during this time, I am spending large amounts of time thinking about what fruits I want to harvest. Depending on the fruit I choose, I have work to do. I need to prepare myself for the change I expect to see and the victories I am declaring with the life I have left to live.

The bible says that a tree will be known by the fruit it bears, a metaphor for life. When we examine our life, or those around us, we should expect to see evidence of the work they put in. My friend Melissa is the most joyous person I know, and she reaps that joy because of the joy she sows in others. Another acquaintance, who shall remain nameless, is the most miserable person and everywhere she goes, misery follows. Her life is a mess because she has not put in the work to make it anything but chaotic. And then there’s me…

I haven’t been satisfied with the trajectory of my life. I’ve had a very successful thirty plus year in corporate America. I have nice things to show for it. I have met tons of wonderful people along the way. I have several beautiful friendships because of my career. But…there’s something more to grow in me. I have felt it for years and now I am in the “in between” stage of embracing change, sowing change, and expecting a harvest of change.

In that broken up dirt that I call a garden, life is soon to spring forth because I am preparing and planting. Some things may not take root but I can’t wait to see what grows.

What are you sowing? How are you preparing? Just remember, that growth involves a lot of work and the willingness to get dirty. Best wishes for both.