BY BRUCE GREEN
OPINION —
I came across a story — perhaps it was more of a parable — you decide for yourself. It was about two girls in their early teens who were best friends. They lived in a small neighborhood that was served by a mom-and-pop grocery store — the kind where all the customers are known by name. The store could easily be walked to, so it wasn’t unusual for the girls to go there several times a week. Sometimes it was to get something their family needed like milk or bread, but other times it was just to hang out together.
They were at the store one day when they heard something. They went around back and saw a crowd of people gathered around the dumpster. The dumpster had a fire going on inside it with roaring flames and popping noises. Some people were throwing things into the fire. The girls found some sticks nearby to throw in and then stood there mesmerized by the flames.
For about ten minutes.
In terms of a teenager’s attention span, that can be a long time. But they decided they had seen all there was to see. Plus, the wind had changed direction, and the smoke was blowing into their eyes. They rubbed their stinging eyes as they backed away from the dumpster—not paying any attention to where they were going. Before they realized it, they were in standing in some-one’s back yard. As they looked around, they saw an elderly lady down on her knees dropping seeds into a small patch of dirt she was working.
“You girls must have been watching the dumpster fire,” she said. “They do that a couple of times a month—but they really aren’t supposed to.” She looked up at the girls and smiled as she continued dropping seeds into the soil.
One of the girls asked her, “What are you doing and why do you look so happy?”
“Well, I’m planting my garden and I’m happy because I love to see things grow.”
“Can we help you?”
“Of course you can!” She poured some seeds into their hands and showed them where in the soil to put them. When they had finished, she said, “And now that you know where I live, you can come visit the garden any time — because it’s also your garden now.”
That’s exactly what the girls did.
They never went back to see the dumpster fire, but they made it a point to go visit their new friend a couple of times a week and work in the garden. She showed them how to weed it, water it, stake up the tomatoes, string up the beans, and how to keep the pests away. When things started coming in, they took some of the vegetables home to their families who were quite impressed with what they had done. It was a special summer for the girls and one they would never forget.
Good things happen when we stop gawking at the pointless fire and lovingly tend to the garden.
Find more at a-taste-of-grace-with-bruce-green.com.