Flowers and Weeds

Sometimes, I feel sorry for those that live around me.  Not because I have kids who like to play outside with their outside voices, or dogs who keep the yard squirrel-free, or chickens who will proudly announce the arrival of a freshly laid egg with a loud chicken squawk!  All of those bring me great joy!  I am that neighbor who's home is tucked in-between those with the perfectly manicured yards, but has all the weeds.  If you saw my yard, it might surprise you to know I love gardening.  I love growing vegetables and eating the bounty of the good earth.  I love studying the blossoms of fragrant roses.  I find weeding oddly therapeutic.
Despite all this, I have a yard that likely embarrasses the neighbors and possibly drives down home prices on my block.  The beauty of my yard is in small sections.  One rose bush in bloom, one planter that is overflowing with herbs, one peony that is drooping over from the weight of pink flowers.  I would love to have that perfectly manicured yard free of weeds, dead patches of lawn and flowers arranged perfectly.  Instead I have grass growing in the flower garden, arugula growing in the driveway, weeds coming up from the rocks and chicken-wire around the vegetable garden to keep the bunnies away.
Tending to my yard is a lot to tending to myself.  I have big dreams for who I should be and what I should be doing.  And in my quest to try to make it all happen, I also have a lot of weeds in my life.  I realize that my quest and goals might be too big.  I will likely never be as educated on current events as I hope, I will run late, my laundry will never be done, and I will miss some swim meets that my children are competing in.  I will eat junk food, sleep less than 8 hours a night, forget birthdays and skip workouts.  With all my weeds, I still have some great beauty in my life.  In my quest for the perfectly manicured lawn, I learning to not to be too disappointed in the weeds.    

Share: