Spring is here and that can mean only one thing - it's time to get outdoors and plant! The first spring of retirement has brought with it renewed enthusiasm for the garden - specifically the growing of healthy, organic, pest free vegetables. I anticipate creating delicious salads and sauces all of which are enhanced by the flavours of my home grown herbs! So after letting the ground lie fallow (with weeds) for the previous season, the sods of soil are tenderly turned, organically enriched, duly drenched and set for sowing. The seedlings are bought, carefully planted, diligently watered and methodically mulched. I wonder - will I reap the benefits in 6-8 weeks time or will my diligence and enthusiasm fade in the heat of the summer sun! My father had an impressive veggie patch and I remember him working in his singlet and shorts, pruning, watering, weeding and mulching. And I remember the fruits of his labour - delicious! I think aging is a bit like a veggie patch. As we age we can easily allow the weeds of discontent, regret and boredom to sink deep into our 'not so fallow' hearts, strangling out any opportunity for tender shoots to grow. We can become cynical and think that the world has nothing to teach us because we have 'seen' it all! We need to have the soil of our hearts stimulated with new ideas, interesting people and creative activities.
Our later years can then become a time of fruitfulness and of productivity, where we influence others and enrich the flavour of their lives.
Our later years can then become a time of fruitfulness and of productivity, where we influence others and enrich the flavour of their lives.
