Garden Goodness

May 4, 2025

My neighbor Lou's bluebonnet bounty

One of my mother’s family legacies is a passion for gardening. My grandmother had a spectacular garden teeming with various blooms, berries, and vegetables. My childhood home had a flower garden that wrapped around the perimeter of the house, and a vegetable garden in the corner of the backyard. I can vividly remember the beauty and aroma of the flowers and the delight in picking and eating home-grown veggies. 

My mother understood the importance of what and how we plant, not only in the ground but in our minds. She used to tell us that the mind is like a garden, and we need to choose wisely what we allow in through our senses. For example, she closely monitored what we watched on television and restricted shows with violence. If she happened to hear gunfire coming from the den, she would come rushing in, “What’s the show?! Turn off that trash!” 

In my years of planting in pots and plots, I’ve learned many lessons of my own. As it turns out, it can take some smelly shit (literally) to maximize growth and blossoms. The most effective compost has animal manure in it, so there you have it.  Here we are in what looks and smells like some very deep shit as a country, and we get to choose what we plant. It still matters, perhaps more than ever, how we tend our inner garden and how we cultivate beauty in our outer garden. 

We can take some of the foul-smelling facts and feelings and ask the Creator to grow something beautiful in and through us. There are always gifts in adversity, and they are ours to find. They are also ours to use to help others through the mess. We all need to see, hear, feel, and breathe beauty and abundant life. This is how we hold our hope and strength when the world pulls us down. 

My 93-year old neighbor has bluebonnets that bloom in her yard every year. They bring me so much joy! Especially this year when they came up through the cracks in the driveway.  It was nature’s reminder that the seeds of love can break through in hard places and surprise us. She had planted the seeds in her garden, and over the years they've spread throughout the front yard and popped up in unexpected places. This gives me hope. When we plant and water the seeds of love, compassion, and joy, the universe takes care of the rest. They will bloom in our garden and well beyond. 

Keep your eyes open this week for nature’s reminders that beauty and goodness are everywhere. Let these signs lift your spirit so your presence can bring grace and peace to those around you. 

ej

Elisa J. Juarez