dirty hands

I put a bunch of new plants in a large planter on my back patio this week. We had previously had several "iceberg" rose bushes in the planter but they were never my style and they had gotten old and tangled. I had cut them way back last winter but they were clearly ready to go. I had my gardener take them out several weeks ago, and then finally got around to making a trip to the nursery and picking something new to put in.

There is something incredibly satisfying about work in the garden. I spend so much of my work life, thinking, talking, and writing, it's a pleasure to balance all that head work with a little hands and muscles work. I also love the creative part of gardening, particularly at the stage of laying out a garden it's an artistic job of choosing which plants to purchase, imaging how they will fit in the space available, and how they will look next to each other, and then laying them in to the ground in a pleasing arrangement.

They say if you love your work you'll never work a day in your life. I feel that way about my ministry. I also feel that way about work in the garden.