Gardening commentator Barbara Sullivan talks about the struggle and reward of getting into "work mode" when it comes time to tend the garden.
By Barbara Sullivan
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/national/local-national-584358.mp3
Wilmington, NC – I read somewhere that when it comes to work projects we have two people living inside our heads. One is the manager who says, "Man, these gutters really need the leaves cleaned out of them. That shouldn't be too hard to do. I'll put it on the calendar for next Saturday." When Saturday rolls around, the other person living inside us, known as the worker, who seems to have never even met the manager, looks at the job written on the calendar and says, "You've got to be kidding." This is why people who agree to bake 200 cookies for the school bake sale or decide to clear out the attic find themselves up to their elbows in cookie dough, or up to their knees in cardboard boxes wondering, "Who on earth talked me into this?"
It's the same thing with gardeners. The manager voice says, "This year I'm going to have the best vegetable garden ever. I'm going to have a dozen varieties of tomatoes from Early Girls to Big Boys. Then a row of Sweet Success Cucumbers, a row of those cute Minnesota Midget Cantaloupes, some Red Baron onions, Rat's Tail radishes, zucchini, banana peppers, jalapenos, poblanos, and lots of garlic so the salsa will be really fresh. And this year I'm finally going to dig those asparagus trenches, grow some watermelons, and fix up the pumpkin patch.
Then, come mid-July, the worker, who once again has never really met the managers, is standing outside in 95 degree heat, eaten up by mosquitoes, looking at a vast expanse of weeds, thirsty plants and worrisome leaves--leaves with odd shaped chew marks where weevils, beetles, lopers and worms have visited,, or ominous brown spots that probably mean blight or rot. So much needs to be done to get these plants back in shape. The worker wipes the sweat off his forehead and wonders, "Who on Earth talked me into this?"
I have to admit, even though I don't grow vegetables, I grow more and more varieties of flowers every year, and sometimes I stand there thinking that a stranger must have planted this garden. I would like to meet that person and have a little talk with her. Because now I'm the one who has to tend to all this exuberant photosynthesis. There's so much to do, and I have no idea how I dug myself into such a deep hole- so to speak.
But when my mind takes this negative turn I just have to think about my neighbor's garden, to remember why we all take on these huge challenges. They live around the corner and work all day in office jobs. Somehow they've managed to fill up every square inch of their front strip with an extravagance of colorful flowers. Plus, they have hanging baskets and containers galore. It's so beautiful that every time I drive by on my way home, it makes me smile. And that's the answer right there. We do it because it makes us happy. Ultimately, regardless of how loudly our worker voices complain.