She sat in the garden and surveyed the chaos in front of her. When had things gotten so completely out of control? It seemed that one minute everything was in order and the next it all was a mess.
Thinking back, she realized that she had made mistakes from the very beginning. She had been in such a hurry to get to the fun parts that she didn’t bother to take the time to build a good foundation. Building foundations was boring and she wanted to move on quickly to the things that gave her instant gratification.
And so, instead of weeding before she put down the weed guard, she laid the thin material right down on top of the weeds.
And, the weeds grew.
She focused her attention on the pretty seed packets in the stores. The options were seemingly endless. Who wanted to dig up ugly roots when there was such quick pleasure to be found in the bright displays of seed choices? She bought a multitude of packets. And, it gave her immediate joy.
And, the weeds grew.
She bought craft sticks and colored pens. And, she hand wrote the names of all the wonderful seeds she had bought onto the sticks. It was fun and it gave her immediate joy.
And, the weeds grew.
She went out and planted her seeds in the small areas she had taken the time to clear. And, she put her little plant markers in the ground to decorate each row. And, it gave her immediate joy.
And, the weeds grew.
She dreamed about the vegetables she would grow and she dreamed about the fancy dishes she would cook with them. And, it gave her immediate joy.
And, the weeds grew.
During the rainy season, she looked out the window and saw that her garden was lush and green and she was happy. When the rains finally stopped, she ran out to revel in her success. As she grew close however, her heart sunk. The lush green shoots she had observed from afar were not her seedlings. They were weeds. She swore she had turned her back and let down her guard for only a moment, but …
The weeds had grown.
The flimsy fabric she had haphazardly placed over the existing weeds had done nothing to protect her precious seedlings. Instead, the invaders had simply grown sideways until they found a way out. Weeds grew out of every small opening in the fabric and along both sides of the material. They towered over her little seedlings and invaded the neat little rows she had created. They wrapped around the tender new shoots and surrounded them with a multitude of tiny starts of their own.
She wanted to just walk away from it all. But, there was something about the fragile little seedlings that called to her. She could barely see them, but she knew they were there. She had failed them before and she needed to make it right.
And so, she sat in the hot sun, covered in dirt, with blisters on her hands, digging up each weed with her little shovel. If only she had done this before the weeds had had a chance to send their roots deep into the ground.
It was so much harder now. But, she attacked each weed with ferocity. And every one she dug up brought her a sense of peace and joy. For, each weed she removed meant one less threat to her little plants.
There would come a day when her seedlings would be strong enough to fight their own battles. They would become taller and stronger than the invading weeds. Their roots would reach far down into the fertile soil and keep them from falling. But, for now, she would fight for them. She would nurture them, water them and protect them. And, she would stand guard against the weeds that threatened to destroy them.
Perhaps after a while she could rest and enjoy the fruits of her labor. But, for now, she would battle on through pain and blisters, heat and cold, to give her seedlings the start in life that they needed.
