Reap the abundance!

You deserve it.  You’ve worked hard.  Swatting bugs, plucking leaves, you’ve tended to each and every aspect of your garden and finally, the first signs of harvest!  Is there a better day?  After all your due diligence, it’s time to reap the reward.

And you’re ready.  Slipping on a brand new pair of gloves you head to the garden with a song in your step.  Up above the sun is shining, a gentle breeze plays with your hair, and there’s not a drip of sweat on your brow.  Could it be a more perfect afternoon?  Eagerly you set out to pick your beans, twist your corn, snip your herbs…  You swim for potatoes and pull your carrots, merrily tossing them into the awaiting basket. 

A special gift from your husband.  See, he did notice your new passion and is fully behind you.  Well, not behind you, behind you.  He’s in the garage.  But his thoughts are with you and that’s enough — for today.

Browsing through rows, you hardly notice the few spots on your tomatoes and in fact, have come to accept them.  They really are quite small and insignificant in the scheme of things, but more importantly, they do nothing to detract from the flavor of the fruit itself.  Good news indeed, as these juicy reds are going into your sauce tonight!

Busily you work, loading your harvest, noting which varieties fared best, which produced most.  Mental note:  jot these down in your journal – you’ll want this data next season.  One of the most wonderful things about harvest is the more you do, the more you receive.  Basil loves to be pinched, as do bushy beans and like a good haircut, it keeps them healthy, shiny and strong.  But wait–

–your basket grows heavy under the weight of fresh pickings.  Oh, no.  You scan the rows yet to be done.  There’s more here than you can possibly carry.  For a moment, you worry.  Will it languish in the pantry?  Wilt in the refrigerator?  You glance about and wonder, What will I do with it all?

You’ll share it.  Like the joy you received in reaping the abundance, you’ll give it to those around you.  Gladly.  Because the more you give, the more you receive; it’s a simple law of nature.  Abundance grows and multiplies when freely shared with others and while it may not return to you in the same form, it will return, and shower you with prosperity.

Stingy gardeners learn the hard way.  Not only does their harvest dwindle, their fruit rots on the vine.  Predators descend and eat away at what’s left, leaving nothing to show for their labor, other than a waste land.  It serves no one, pleases no one and most of all, provides nothing more than a depressing climax after a glorious season of joy and devotion. 

But it’s never too late.  If you’re willing, you can turn past mistakes into future success.  Turn all that crap – literally – into compost; the foundation for a stronger and better crop next season.  But you must mix it up.  You have to turn the garbage inside out and do some re-tilling.  However, if you renew your commitment and resolve to do the best you can do, then you’ll be rewarded for your efforts and never want for anything again – but it’s okay.  You already have everything you need at your fingertips.