The Garden in June…

The garden in June…harrowing, humbling, heartbreaking, and of course full of meaning. Every year has gotten worse and more challenging so I thought I was prepared to face what came. It all escalated so fast though, with the worse drought in nearly twenty years and of course continuous record-breaking heat, paired with incredibly inconsistent winter and spring weather leading up to the growing season. It has been a struggle and so frustrating to witness the land and life around me represent the suffering of the larger whole. My corn stopped growing at about 3 feet, my “giant” sunflowers are about 2′ tall, I have gotten a total of 3 zucchinis, and zero cukes to speak of. The other plants are either dead or in stasis. I have barely seen bees or butterflies. But my lack of harvest is not what this is about.

I am so tied to this growth and tending to the land, of course I also want to provide for myself, but that is not why I have wept standing in my tomatoes or prayed for rain on a daily basis. I remembered that it is all about RELATIONSHIP. The garden has held me up, cured my woes, literally and metaphorically fed me so much year after year. And now it was my turn, my responsibility to not give up on it, be there for it as it struggled, hold space while it does the best it can with the shit hand it’s been dealt, and appreciate all of it no matter what – just like it has done for me in all my times of pain and despair. And we wept together, felt not only the absence of moisture and better growing conditions, but of our constant garden companion Sadie Bee. I almost did not grow this year because I could not imagine gardening without her, but now I do it in her honor… I am so grateful for ALL THIS BEAUTY and life that is still finding a way despite be pushed to the brink. This year, the bounty is not in pounds of tomatoes but in the abundance of humility, gratitude, and sacred interconnection always found in the garden – and why I do it at all.