Garden Lesson

I picked two heads of lettuce from the backyard garden this weekend. Something about picking vegetables changes one's thoughts about the gift that is plants and the importance of not wasting.

I cleaned them under slow-running water in the kitchen. And I thought about how long it had taken them to grow in my gardens that receive only modest sunlight. They had been there quite a while. I thought about how long they took to reach picking stage versus how fast they would be eaten. I believe that people feel like something that can be consumed so quickly can be replaced as quickly. True, if you simply run to the store, but think about the amount of time, energy, disease and bug prevention, etc., that is required to transform those plants into food. The same could be said of animals, but I don't have any examples of those changes happening in my yard!

The things we eat don't come to that stage easily, and are, indeed both miracle and gift in one. Waste not; appreciate more.

Listen to Life is a free newsletter about learning and getting more from life by paying attention to our own stories and the stories of others, based on the presentations, writings, photography and workshops by Dion McInnis (www.dionmcinnis.com).  Copyright 2012 Dion McInnis.  All rights reserved