Unexpected treasures!

Nearly all the best things that came to me in life have been unexpected, unplanned by me.

          ~Carl Sandburg

This garden, shown here in May, with acorn squash, cantaloup and cucumbers...

was hit hard by the draught! (the garden is in the background to the right of the tree)

     This summer has been a very difficult one for this novice gardener. The draught we have experienced in central Indiana is a record breaker, with literally no rain for a period of over 6 weeks and more 90+ degree days than ever recorded. There was a period of time when we broke 100 for days on end.  I had planted 3 raised beds of vegetables in the back yarn, planting tomatoes in one, hot and green peppers in another, and the third had one acorn squash, one cantaloup and one cucumber plant in it. As the draught wore on, I spent every morning hauling water out to the garden. At first I included the flowers too, but over time realized that our well was also suffering, and setting a difficult priority, I stopped watering the flowers and focused on the vegetables. 

     As a result of this difficult growing environment, our crop of tomatoes has been almost nonexistent. Of the five plants, we've had maybe 5 tomatoes total. The green peppers fared a little better, but they were small and not too many of them. The hot peppers seemed to enjoy the heat better, we've had more than we could eat. The acorn squash delivered up one very small squash which we ate and enjoyed, and then it dried up and literally broke off at the ground. The cantaloup plant never seemed to grow much at all, and despite lots of blooms, I gave up hope of any harvest. The cucumber plant has gone crazy though and we've had fresh cucumbers literally every day all summer. 

     Lanny has kept the bird feeders full all summer too, as there has been little for the birds to eat. He fills three feeders about twice a week, and we have had all manner of birds stop by for a meal. Birds are naturally messy eaters, scattering seeds all over the place. Under the feeder can become a huge mess!

     About mid July I noticed a very large weed growing directly under one of the feeders. It was so hot I didn't get out to pull it until it was about 2 1/2 feet tall, and when I went out I realized that this was no weed... it was a sunflower! I had tried to grow sunflowers with very limited success several years before, so when I saw the giant bloom coming I just couldn't pull it. I left it where it grew and watched as it grew a little more, flowered and then burst into seeds. Now the birds enjoy sitting on the edge of the big bloom and leaning over to pull fresh seeds from the center of the flower. 

 

     And likewise, on a visit to the vegetable garden last week I discovered a hidden treasure-- down in the foliage from what I thought was part of the cucumber vines, I found a cantaloup growing! When I leaned over to admire it, I reached in to touch it, and it broke off the vine. It looked like a regular cantaloup except it was only the size of a softball. I carried it in and showed it to Lanny. We let it sit on the counter for a couple days and it quickly ripened. We joked about our "personal sized" cantaloup. I cut it open and enjoyed what must be the juiciest, sweetest cantaloup I have ever tasted! 

 

     Both of these small little unexpected treasures have prompted a little thought this morning... How true it is that some of life's sweetest moments are unplanned. Moments of pure joy are often unexpected gifts to us-- some arrive because we sowed the seeds long ago and are reaping a harvest we'd forgotten about, others are gifts to us from God via his angels on earth-- in this case the birds who scattered the birdseed. 

     Take the time now to sow some seeds for unexpected joy later, and take the time to stop and enjoy the gifts God gives you each day. It will make life so much sweeter!!