"inch by inch, row by row..."

I probably haven't had a garden since I was ten years old. After we moved from my first home mid-fifth grade, I had no interest. Later, when I had interest, I had no time. Today, I had both.

I took a day off to plant a garden. I planned a simple thing: some sunflowers, bird/butterfly friendly wildflowers, and some hydrangea.

(And, by the way, I want to go on the record as saying that I think that hydrangea are one of the prettiest things God has ever done.)

The weather was awesome: 80 degrees and sunny. I started by digging up the daylilies (we keep thinking they're gone and they keep coming back). Which brought me to the evil lilac bush that will not go away... It rarely flowers, it just takes up space. However, with hard work, persistence, time, and my hatchet, I finally got it (and I think most of its roots) out.

Despite about seven hours of hard work, I do not think that the garden will do very well. Why? Well, for starters, I have never seen so many rocks in one patch of dirt... When I was a little girl, my Gram had a very pretty flower garden in the same place I am trying to cultivate. I asked her about the rocks. She insists they have always been there and do not affect the garden.

I do not believe that.

On the other hand, I think I could find and remove rocks for a week straight and still be nowhere near rock-free.

Also, there are many tree roots pretty close to the surface. I am not even sure where they are all coming from. There were a few trees trying to grow behind the lilac, but I got those all out, too. (As I attacked the roots with my trusty hatchet, I heard Henry in my head, "For every ten people who are clipping at the branches of evil, you're lucky to find one who's hacking at the roots.")

I dunno. Maybe it doesn't matter how successful the garden is. I mean, today was an enormously satisfying day, so maybe that is enough. I got sunburned, which was kind of cool (although I will be buying some 1000 spf lotion soon). I thoroughly enjoyed all the physical labor, especially the digging and hacking. It made me feel strong. I loved the thoughts and stories that ran through my head (even if I was reminded of the parable of the Sower, which made me even more aware of how unfertile my soil is). I amused myself by singing along with a cd of Arlo Guthrie singing "The Garden Song."

If all I got out of all that work was a really good day... Well, that's pretty good.

It sure will be nice if I get some flowers, too, though. Oh, and the hydrangea is in a different part of the yard and was already flowering, so at least I have those...