Monday, March 14, 2016

the reluctant gardener listened

ever since the wife implored me to be temporary caretaker of her beloved plants while she is away this leafdropper has always been a reluctant gardener.  not that i don't love plants.  it's just that i am sure i have not the green thumb.  

during high school days, there was this extra curricular subject where we were taught to hoe and tend garden plots by ourselves and to drop our chosen vegetable seeds and nurture the seedlings till harvest time.  i must confess my grades on this subject were terrible.  i have had this opinion that what's needed only is to religiously water the plants.  the sunshine and the gentle breeze and the generosity of Mother Earth will take care of the rest.  i discovered for vegetables such was a bad opinion.

yesterday, i again reluctantly came out and sprayed water on the wife's plants.  I don't even know what they are. I noticed they've grown so well these past months. they were robust and strong and green and upright.  some have already flowered.  beautiful, delicate white ones.  i am sure they're sweet-scented as well.  new leaves and stems have steadily grown but they were shooting forth in all directions.  the thing is, growth has somehow filled up the spaces between the plants and they are now appearing constricted.  something must be done to free some space.

i pulled out the pruning shears.  i don't know where to begin.  i am sure the plants are expecting me to do something.  i looked helplessly.  lost.  i fixed my gaze intently on the juxtaposition of the branches, twigs, leaves, flowers.  intermingled.  intertwined.  i knew the birds perched on my rooftop were observing me.  spectators all, warbling joyfully about this lovely day.  the afternoon sunlight gave silvery gleam on the beads of water that still clung on the leaves and twigs and stems.

i lifted the pruning shears and gently placed it over an unruly sprout.  i thought i heard it said, "go ahead, prune me!"  i did.  I kept listening for the go ahead whisper.  for the permission to cut. i kept pruning. lifting the shears over and gently placing over the spot where i felt I needed to cut.

leaves dropped, twigs fell, branches as well.  space being released.  constriction bring corrected.  i also heard something like, " can't breathe, please unloose the soil over this spot, " or, " i am vulnerable here, my roots are exposed, please cover me. "

i did what i was told as i kept listening.

finally, it's done.  everything looked pleasantly in order.  the birds were quiet now but still perched on my rooftop.  the sun has slowly turned golden and about to set.

i took the stickbroom and swept the cuttings and gathered them inside a garbage bag.  freshly cut plants have this particularly enticing scent.  

i felt relieved.  thank you, my plants, for helping me.

i am pretty sure if I'll be graded this time,  i will have passing marks. 

Happiness is time well spent.

6 comments:

captron52 said...

Hi Sito There's nothing like being outdoors and giving Mother Nature a little help. There's a lot of beauty in a well tended garden. Bet the wife will be proud of you! Have a terrific evening.

Bani said...

I loved this one! it's cute and I can totally relate to it too! I've been trying to do the same to take care of the beloved plants left by my father. Mostly, i just enjoy watering them. It's self soothing too!

Love to your plants,

sito saguid said...

thanks for the visit brother Ron. it is amusing to find such joy in this outdoor activity as tending a garden. if one focuses the mind and the heart more surely one will be rewarded by Mother Nature. no wonder many of us are so engrossed in tending gardens, an activity which, i am afraid, the younger generation of this Internet age might have lost awareness of.

sito saguid said...

~bani,

glad you visited. it is indeed such a soothing experience to silently commune with plants. the green, the brown, the various shades of color that one sees; the "wetness" of the water, the forming of silvery beads on leaves and flowers, the bends and curlicues of branches and twigs; the scent of the wind, the miniature rainbow formed as sunlight passes thru the misty water, ahhh, such wonderful moment makes this leafdropper forget his reluctance ... thanks for coming by

by the way, may I introduce you to captron52 of the comment above. i am sure you'll love the positivity of his posts.

christopherdossantos3@gmail.com said...

Namaste brother, always a pleasure to stop by. Gardening is a favourite activity of mine. As weeks and months pass, I love to watch things grow, flower, produce food. Especially pleasurable are the perennials, it is a joy to go through the seasons with them.

In reading your post, it does appear to me brother, your thumb is much greener than you have given yourself credit for. Perhaps, over the years you have learned to listen, a task much more challenging when we are younger.

Thank you for taking the time to share this loving, living, experience.

In Lak' ech, prosper with love... live with life...

sito saguid said...

brother Chris
thanks much for stopping by. I am learning much from
Listening to the silence of these wonderful living things -- the greens, the browns, the whites and pinks, the tender offshoots,
the crisp leaves, the hurt of a broken branch, the fear of an exposed root -- oh, what joy!