A few nights ago I was giving my dogs one last late-night trip outdoors. We checked out the mailbox, where the third generation of petunias was newly planted and in full bloom. And there they were--two petunia stumps with fresh bite marks! And there, hopping away across the empty lot next door--two rabbits! One stopped to look at us, and it really only took a little bit of imagination to hear a chuckle....
So my apologies to the raccoon. I don't know what he's doing in my backyard (besides visiting the back deck and leaving souvenirs), but I have new villains the petunia saga. So I'm not planting any more petunias out there. Maybe after the rabbits have finished them off, I'll replace them with marigolds.
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A few of my tomatoes are blushing. Just a day or two....
Yesterday when I woke up I just couldn't resist a peek at them. So I headed out the back sliding glass door, which is just ten feet or so from the garden. And there he was--a rabbit, nibbling on the wildflowers I planted behind the tomatoes! I chased him off and assessed the damage. The wildflowers I can live without. But it was the fresh smell of butterhead lettuce that concerned me. A closer inspection told me that one was gone. And the other three had lost their outer leaves.
So I headed out to the local discount store for rabbit fencing. By 11:30 am I had cooled down some, stakes were sawed down and pounded in, and rabbit fencing was mounted. I stepped back and surveyed my kingdom.
Well, it's not so pretty anymore. I planted my garden for looks as much as for food. A little pebblestone path winds around the bean section, with lettuce and (at one time) spinach dotting the borders. The idea was to be able to wander outdoors at will, pick a few beans for supper, and maybe sit and rest in the shade with a glass of lemonade or a morning cup of coffee.
So now I've sacrificed some of the aesthetic value. It's a utilitarian garden. But on the other hand, if the whole idea of the garden was to have a place to de-stress (I have young kids, after all), I'm certainly not gaining any peace from watching my lettuce and baby bean leaves slowly disappear.
If the bunnies are hungry--well, the crabgrass around here is free.
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We're facing some hard choices right now for democracy in America. Do we keep our freedoms at the expense of terror strikes? Or do we restrict our freedoms and make ourselves safe? I don't know where I stand anymore. I would have thought I stood for freedom at all cost. But as we can see from my real, practical, hands-on life, I chose to close the borders of my garden, restricting my own free access (I just don't have the skills to make a gate--I have to step over the fence to get in). I believe our little choices tell us a lot about our larger ideals. So I guess it's a good thing the running of this country is not up to me.
However, I believe every time you're faced with impossible choices like we have now, there's always a hidden third choice. What about--GOD? There's a popular praise song people were singing ten years ago. "God will make a way where there seems to be no way." (Don Moen, ©1990, Integrity's Hosanna! Music.) I also believe God has things he would do if somebody would ask him. That's called prayer. And if God doesn't intervene for our country, and I didn't pray about it, am I partly responsible? Just because I didn't pray? I don't know, but I'd prefer not to take any chances. So I find myself praying for our country more these days.
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5 comments:
Rabbits are greedy little buggers. Right now we have a baby rabbit living in amongst our cucumbers, very cute. I'm encouraging him to eat his share. The very first picking of cukes yeilded about 10 lbs enough to put up 15 pints of sweet pickles plus several for slicing and eating plain and for onion and cukes salad and to give away. I really over did the cukes this year :) Invest in a box of mothballs. And I learned a new trick for hindering bugs. dill! Plant a few dill plants in with your lettuces and cabbages and the cabbage worms will stay at bay.
I guess you can say I'm the opposite of you, though, never close the borders, increase hinderances, but just increase the bounty so you don't mind as much when they do find their way in, which they always will.
A.
I've always dreamed of having such a big garden that everyone (including the bunnies) could have their share. But--there's not enough backyard here. My garden is just 10 feet by 10 feet--I may be about to squeeze another five feet in one direction, and that's about it. I'll try the mothballs, though.
Thanks, A. : )
Thinking of your gardens as our lives. Maybe God intends to keep the sphere of influence bigger for some and smaller for others. Godseeker has made one very happy bunny and developed quite an ongoing relationship. While A. feeds several (and her family- and hopefully mine too) but the harvest is big so harder to get to know each bunny as well.
As far as the fencing I think we can get so closed off we won't expose ourselves to any interaction. (Not critisizing your bunny proofing but looking at life in general) It seems over the years we get more in our small sphere and less concerned about others.
I mean as a kid do you remember running the block with your friends?? Everyone played until dark when the moms stood on the porch and yelled your name. Now everyone has play equiptment in their own back yard and fences or hedges. It takes effort and play dates to get kids together and it's usually organized in some way. I think we forget to keep it simple and love our neighbors. I guess I see this more and more. People segregating themselves to a small core of friends and family. The benefits of opening yourself up are tremendous for you, your kids and Gods kingdom. After all it's hard to be in the world from your living room.
Okay, after taking a day or so to cool off, it does seem that maybe spending $20 on rabbit fencing to save three heads of lettuce -- maybe a little over the top. And maybe the fencing sounds a little like reverting back to the earlier years of walls. But on the other hand, it's good to establish boundaries (as opposed to walls). If my bunny and I are going to be together for the 2 (maybe 3) years that he has, he needs to know what he can and cannot have. The flowers are okay--I can plant more wild ones next year, and I'll hold off on petunias and sage in the same bed. But I do have a fall salad garden coming, and now that he's found the veggies, I want to be prepared.
And here's one more "get to know Godseeker" tidbit. I have two young kids. Life can be trying. I remember a while back when we all opened up and shared how trying life can be for us as mothers. After that, I started gardening, and it was a breakthrough. Twenty or so minutes a day in the garden, and it was easier to share the rest of the day with my kids. Prayer to start the day, gardening in the middle of the day, worship music at the end of the day. That's how I get by. So I'm not willing to give that precious time to the anger one feels when one is taken advantage of--even if it's just a bunny.
So--$20 to grow three heads of lettuce. Or $20 to preserve something that helps me cope. It's cheaper than psychotherapy. :-)
I think this is turning into therapy for me!
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