patience is a virtue...

i have been both blessed and haunted by this exhortation, and sometimes in the same moment! my latest reminder of patience has been this

gardening adventure that i embarked upon in mid-march. the weather was just calming down, and my little neck of the woods was starting to show signs of spring. i felt the urge to jump right in and get my hands dirty, literally! with the stress of being laid off (recently rehired, thankfully) and almost a full year of marriage under my belt, i needed a new challenge! since my dad is/was a landscaper, and my most of entire extended family grow their own food (in some capacity), i thought, heck, why not me?! so, I started a snowball of events including: researching urban gardens, joining seed exchanges, understanding the need for composting, and to my "green" sister's chagrin, bought (instead of made) my first composting system, planted some seeds, bought some pots, transplanted my seeds, and watered my new hybrid garden of herbs and veggies. hmm.. piece of cake, right?!

well, turns out that even after weeks of research and familial consultation, i still have a lot to learn. hence, the patience. here's my list of "oopsies" that hopefully none of you will ever make: 1. make sure your gardening area has access to a very regular supply of sunlight, turns out it's pretty imperative (thanks Mama!) 2. when buying new pots from Ikea, always inspect for a drainage hole in the bottom, especially when you live in an area that gets A LOT of rain (thanks Larm!) 3. space your seeds far enough apart that your dill and cilantro don't "mingle" and create a new herb I like to call the "dill-antro" (you were right, Dad!) 4. you CAN over water and yellow leaves aren't a good thing (thanks Auntie Helen!) and 5. don't compost unless you have the stomach to handle the unbearable stench 'cause it's a lot of work to just leave in a pile on your deck because you're too scared to open it :)

so, back to patience. i have really recognized that my patience has a lot of room for growth, especially as I have dealt with the death of my first pea pod plant, my overactive dill, and inches of sitting water in my herb pots. also... i am jealous watching my extremely green family already have veggies to pick and herbs to enjoy, while what should only be referred to as, "sarah's planting experiment", is still hardly bigger than a seedling. my wonderfully patient and eternally optimistic husband reminds me that it's all a part of the process. and that he is proud of me, so i should be, too. another first. well, since i probably won't have anything to physically share with anyone until october or november, here are some pictures to enjoy. if i ever reap what i have sown, i will be so proud to share with you all some of my herbs, carrots, pea pods, cucumbers and tomatoes. until then bon appetite!