Kids' Gardening: Batman Pink

 

Did not I see thee

in the garden with him?

 

 -- John 18:26b

 

 

See below for an announcement about a new venture: kids gardening!

Artwork by Neecy Twinem, www.neecytwinem.com, an author/illustrator who let me use this adorable painting in exchange for hosting her at garden art workshops for kids in Omaha April 22-23!

 

 

 

Some people feel closest to Jesus in church, with the soaring music and beautiful pageantry. Some experience Him in the early morning quiet, reading the Bible every day.

 

But I'm with Jesus when I'm down on my sweaty hands and knees, with a dirt moustache . . . gardening.

 

There's no other place where the mysteries of life unfold right before your eyes. Wonders come out of nowhere, nourish body and soul, and then go away. You just have to trust that they'll come back around next year.

 

How does that tiny little seed know when it's time to sprout and produce a plant that grows over our heads?

 

Look at those long, elegant stamens on that tulip!

 

That ladybug looks just like my Mini Cooper!

 

Smell that tuberose - heavenly.

 

Taste this Better Boy tomato - it's still warm.

 

I find so much joy in gardening. It's more engaging than a movie, more educational than a book, more dramatic than a play. I've always done my best thinking on my knees. Gardening is a major opportunity for solitude and prayer, getting some perspective, soaking up some rays, breathing in the fresh air, being alone with my Savior to just "chin."

 

It is wonderful to be able to share bouquets and veggies with my family and friends. I love the taste of summer's homemade fiery salsa in the doldrums of the long, cold winter.

 

Yes, gardening has its solemn and sad moments, too. Inevitably, in the fall, after the harvest is done, the good stuff in the garden goes away. What's left is gray and black, drab and dead-looking for months.

 

But then, poof! Surprise! One day, green shoots reappear. And I smile. There soon will be an explosion of color and life and fun, and I can be a part of it. Garden Time is back!

 

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see the parallels between a garden and our life here on Earth. It all started in a garden, after all, and ends with a sure promise of a different kind of life to come in the next garden, if you've bought a ticket on the JC Train.

 

The Savior really was a Seed: comes out of nowhere . . . doesn't look like much to start . . . comes to fruition with amazing miracles and astounding wisdom, influencing people far beyond anyone else, ever, in history . . . and then lets Himself get caught - ironically, in a garden - then killed . . . goes away, so things are back to drab and bleak . . .

 

. . . BUT THEN THE BIG SURPRISE: HE COMES BACK!!!

 

Nothing is as wonderful as thinking you're beat, you're done, you've had it . . . and then God does His thing. And you're better off than you were before. That's the message of Easter. It's also the message of gardening. You make something out of next to nothing, and use it to bless others, and everybody wins.

 

Over the years, besides all the lessons and fun that I've harvested from my favorite hobby, I've learned that the real blessings come from teaching children about gardening. God's favorite thing is new life. It's fun to teach relatively new human life about life in the garden, and hope they make the connection back to the Creator. After all, God's favorite "plants" are PEOPLE!

 

Here's my favorite story about gardening with children:

 

We were planting flowers with our daughters' preschool friends. We had sent a note home asking each family to take their child to the garden center as a mini-learning excursion, and choose a four-pack of any annual flower that they liked. Each family would donate the flowers to the preschool and we would help their child plant them.

 

That way, we got a huge variety of colors, shapes and sizes to beautify the preschool entry. And each child got a mini-gardening lesson and could watch his or her flowers grow and develop.

 

Well, some kids apparently didn't get to choose what flower to bring. Here came a macho little 4-year-old boy in a baseball shirt. He was holding his four-pack out at arm's length, with a squint of apparent disgust. Why?

 

Because they were pink begonias. PINK!

 

He was obviously conflicted. There had to be some way to make this color acceptable to the 4-year-old male psyche.

 

Before I could speak, he informed me:

 

"These are BATMAN PINK."

 

That was more than 20 years ago. I still call pink flowers "Batman Pink." What choice do I have?

 

That's the thing about gardening, especially with kids: the fun, surprises and wonderful harvest of delight keep on growing and blossoming in your heart . . . just like the Gardener planned. †