I guess summer is over...

Posted by Jordan

Our garden was dealt the death blow a few days ago. I knew it would happen eventually, but I never envisioned it being so gruesome and dramatic. Of course, here in Cache Valley we had to go from beautiful golden fall temperatures in the high sixties to a subarctic blizzard overnight. I came out into my back yard in the morning; the snow and ice had my lawn subdued in a crunchy choke hold. As I tiptoed around the corner of the house, I barely caught the lump that rose suddenly in my throat. The parasitic frost was feasting on the limp carcasses of my beautiful plants! The poor tomato plants were hanging, draped over their wire supports, limp, shriveled, and blackened. Some green tomatoes that never even got a fair chance now dangled at the end of stringy vines like a corpse hangs at the end of a noose. I ran inside, buried my face in my pillow, and wept like a child.

This was our first garden. Up until this point, our circumstances have never been conducive to having one. But this year was finally our time! For the first time, it seemed, we had no plans to move at the end of the summer. We had a yard. And we had lots of tree buckets that I scavenged from the landscapers when we moved in last August.




(Just like in USU housing, we're not allowed to dig a garden bed, so we had to be creative.)

By the way, one of the things we learned about gardening this year is that no matter how badly you want an aesthetically pleasing bucket arrangement, you can't plant this close together. I had to move everything later.)

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Just like the primary song teaches:

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"The prophet said

to plant a garden,

so that's what we'll do.

For God has given

rich brown soil

and rain and sunshine too.

And if we plant

the seeds just right

and tend them carefully,

before we know,

good things will grow

to feed our family."

So we did! And we didn't just plant vegetables, either. We planted some strawberries herbs, and flowers as well. Now, as you can see, our garden certainly wouldn't win any awards, but it being our first attempt, and having invested time, sweat, and money (a few tears, but no blood, thank goodness) into our little project, we took a lot of pride and satisfaction in it!


Another side note: Our excitement over the new little strawberry buds in the spring was crushed by some vermin that came and ate every single one of our little strawberries just about two days before we planned to pick them. Stinking vermin!!! I was so mad, I called everyone I thought might endure my rant and let them know how much I despised whatever it was that came and enjoyed my little strawberries before I could. Whatever ate them (could have been a skunk or a bird) it left just this one little mutant runt strawberry, that we harvested with care, cut delicately in half, and savored between the two of us.

We had some other trials through the summer, like a violent wind that snapped off our corn stalks. They grew to well over eight feet tall before they broke. We got only one good ear of Indian corn with deep red and blue-grey kernels, which is currently adorning our kitchen table. But despite the corn and strawberries, we enjoyed a few cucumbers, lots of tomatoes, zucchini, summer squash, bell peppers, and fresh cilantro and dill. And we learned a lot along the way:

1. We learned that vegetables grown in your own garden taste so much better than the ones you buy at the store. Maybe it is just psychological-- the satisfaction of being self-sufficient in some small measure. Maybe they really do taste better.

2. We learned a deeper appreciation for God's creations, his power, and our own inadequacy to do anything on our own. At the beginning of the summer, I put some seeds in some dirt. At the end of the summer, I had eight-foot corn stalks. I certainly did not make them grow, nor could I if I had wanted. We sometimes get caught up in what "we" accomplish, when in fact it is God that gives life and makes it all happen. Finally, It is so amazing that such a tiny thing like a seed has the ability within itself to become a mature plant and produce more of itself. You would never look at the corn stalk and believe that it came from the little kernel! Likewise, it is amazing to me that we, the seeds of deity, have the potential to eventually become like our Father in Heaven.

3. We also learned that if you are going to leave on a week-long vacation, you can't expect your neighbor to take care of your garden the same way that you would, so don't be surprised to come home and find your dry, wilting plants propped up with rocks. (We appreciate their effort.)

4. We learned that after all is said and done, our garden was probably not too much cheaper than just buying the vegetables at the store. But oh, it was worth it! The satisfaction of helping something grow, the feeling of self-reliance, and the peace that comes from knowing that you're doing your best to follow the prophet's counsel!

For a couple of years now, Jaicee and I have talked about someday having a few acres of land. We want pigs and chickens, a small orchard, a huge garden, and an enormous pumpkin patch. (I love pumpkins!) Our first experience with a garden this summer only fueled my desire to someday have land to cultivate and plant, and a garden to work in all year. I loved going out every morning to examine my plants, prune them, pull weeds, and watch their progress. It only took me a few minutes each morning for my tiny little bucket garden, and I always wished there was more to do! I would have spent all day working in my garden if I could.

Crazy as it sounds to those who knew me before my mission, (or maybe not so crazy if you knew Grandpa Knutson), there is a little bit of farmer in me. Jaicee and I agree, we would always be discontented somewhere deep inside to live in suburbia with no space, no fields, no gardens or orchards, no pigs, no chickens, no self-reliance, no room to breathe or stretch, nowhere to dig, nowhere to build, nowhere for the kids to run and play. We were both spoiled to grow up with open space around us and streets without traffic. We want the same for our children, but they are growing up fast.

But I wonder sometimes whether having land is something that will ever be available to me at all! Or anyone of my generation for that matter! Well... probably not if I want to live close to civilization. My father-in-law tells me that land is cheap in Naf, Idaho. :P Yes, there are many obstacles (primarily financial) to having our dream lifestyle. But it is my goal; I guess we'll see. In the meantime, we're excited to plant another back-yard bucket garden next spring.