Friday, November 16, 2012

Surprises amid monotony

Today I cleared another patch of primrose-infested ground under the apricot tree. Weeding is a monotonous, Sisyphean job. By the time I work my around and attend to all the places that need weeding, the first place needs weeding again. However, if I don't do it, primeval chaos is certain to overrun our backyard Eden.

Weeding is boring, but it's fun to walk around the perimeter of our yard and see what's new. Today I saw the first tiny head of broccoli beginning to form, gladiolus shoots poking their way through what appeared to be a barren dirt patch near the lower pond, and an errant sugar snap pea that decided to sprout in a gravel pathway. The ones I so carefully planted at the proper depth, right under a drip tubing hole and next to the sturdy trellis Mike built for them, germinated poorly, and are still struggling to reach the first rung of the trellis. Yet here is one, carelessly dropped in a seemingly hostile portion of the yard, stubbornly growing and apparently healthy. Gardening, like life, is surprising and unexplainable at times.

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