Learn About Life through Gardening
It’s been awhile since I’ve had my own garden. It’s not because I couldn’t, I just didn’t. Time has a way of getting away and with food prices being as inexpensive as they are, I just didn’t think it necessary. Now, I not only think it necessary but mandatory.
Gardening is not just about what you plant and grow and feeding yourself and others. It is about life itself. More exact, about the cycle of life we all find ourselves in. In my younger days I never thought about gardening that way but there’s something about tilling the dirt, planting, growing and reaping and the battles that ensue along the way that is very familiar in other places.
My brother and I were extremely fortunate to be able to spend a lot of our summer vacations with our grandfather. He farmed cotton and made us work out in the elements to learn about hard work and how to work with others. We also learned about growing things and what that meant. That has stayed with me throughout the years and I guess that’s one reason gardening resonates with me.
There is nothing like working outside in the dirt. What you learn by doing is so much more profound than from reading it in a book or watching. Knowing what each plant needs from you at any given time and that you can satisfy it with a little water or food is amazing. Caring for plants will teach you how to care for the world.
If you choose, you can garden on a year round basis. In most parts of the country you will need either a cold frame or a garden greenhouse of some kind. Most people recoup their investment in a couple of years if they choose to grow some of their own food. Statistically, many families are starting to do this all over the world.
In conclusion, it just makes since to obtain the knowledge and know-how to take care of yourself and your family. Why put the future of yourself and your family in the hands of a grocery store, food prices or the government when you can very well grow your own. It feels better knowing you’re taking care of a part of your food source. You control the pesticides and what you grow. It doesn’t get any better than that.
