An End Of Summer Lesson: Plant Something Beautiful Among The Disasters

Fausto Zonaro: Young Girl Carrying a Pumpkin 1889

You can learn a lot of things from the flowers.

 — Alice in Wonderland

I hesitated making this post. I wondered whether it was important enough to share. It's a very small update. But I decided I want to share my life even when it's small. Our summer garden was a huge failure. No watermelons. No cucumbers. No sweet potatoes. No eggplants. No zinnias. Only three squash. All the heirloom tomatoes quickly yellowed, died and produced nothing. We were in heaven over the 20 tomato sandwiches we ate this summer (all Early Girl tomatoes.) The four Sunshine Blue blueberry bushes we planted 4 years ago are now gloriously productive. We harvested so many blueberries.

My view of Rudbeckia blooming from the back of our yard.

Mr. Peasant has been suffering an IT band injury, and I have been suffering a shoulder injury due to trying to get the heavy lifting tasks done.  Both of us have been sidelined, and the yard and garden show it. The backyard is covered in tall grass like a highway strip in August. Every time I'd stare out my back door, I was confronted with our failures and inability to tend to our property. The property we prayed and saved for now made me feel overwhelmed.  

But something really amazing and small happened. Two years ago, I dug up a piece of a rudbeckia from the front yard. I planted it near the walking track and forgot about it. This year the plant grew almost 5 feet high! And then, one October day I peaked out the back door window and saw 50 bright mustard yellow flowers. It was incredible. 

Here is the point I want to share. Once that rudbeckia plant bloomed, my view changed.  I'd peak out the back door, and all I saw were those happy yellow flowers swaying in the breeze. It might as well been a Christmas tree with how it lit up the whole yard. I never noticed our awful yard after that rudbeckia bloomed. I only noticed the huge beautiful flowers. 

All the flower seeds I planted in the ground in spring were quickly gobbled up by rabbits. I planted a new bed in August. I didn't think anything would grow so late in the season. I planted the new bed with chocolate cherry tomatoes, an early girl tomato cutting I rooted, candy roasters, basil and zinnia seeds. We got 3 more tomatoes and a few handfuls of cherry tomatoes. Everything in the bed failed except the Zinnias. I've gathered vases full of colorful flowers all month. I'm so glad I sowed more flower seeds. It was the best Zinnia harvest I've ever had. 

Planted 3 tiny clearance mums under each tree of the allee.

Plant the flower seeds late, find a spot for a dying mum from the clearance rack, divide a perennial for next year, and plant a bulb for Spring.  Plant beautiful things in the middle of the disaster. One lovely thing can lift up your soul and your heart. One candle can light up a room full of darkness. Bake some oatmeal cookies, play a happy song, and put a vase of flowers on your sticky kitchen table. We will always have the weeds with us. Remember to plant the good. Remember to plant a beautiful thing. 

I set the Lord always in my sight:

for he is at my right hand, that I be not moved.

Therefore my heart hath been glad, and my tongue hath rejoiced: 

moreover my flesh also shall rest in hope.

PSALM 15:8  DRA