July 12, 2008 ~ Backyard Blessings
“. . . be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
~ Hebrews 13:5
This morning John and I spent some time in our little backyard garden. You know, even small gardens require a bit of working, so we puttered around watering the potted plants and feeding the roses and vegetables their favorite breakfast of MiracleGro. We set out sprinklers and pruned away some dead or weak branches. We observed the things that need to be done this weekend – our lemon and grapefruit trees need a new sturdy stake because they are laden over with heavy fruit, and one of our little grape tomatoes is growing in a broken pot, so we need to give it a new, more suitable home so it can thrive and continue its generous nature.
It’s a small backyard garden, but it spills forth many, many blessings for us!
Heirloom Rose
The heirloom roses bring easy beauty and fragrance to our little garden, and each have their own unique personality, likes and dislikes, yet they cooperate together in their own corner of the backyard to flood our senses with goodness.
Grape tomato in broken pot
This little Grape Tomato was planted by a bird in a broken pot on our patio. A complete volunteer, it has given us many, many of its sweet red fruit to flavor our salads or to simply enjoy as a snack.
Sweet Basil
Ah, my Sweet Basil – undoubtedly one of my favorite herbs in the garden. I love everything about it – the shiny green leaves, the scent it gives the garden when anything brushes by, and the flavor of it in my sauces, pizzas or salads. Magnificent in every way!
Dill with dew
Dill. I can never see it without remembering my grandmother who made the best dill pickles in the world! It is in my garden for culinary use and because it keeps that sweet memory alive.
Parsley and Thyme
My pot of Parsley and Thyme that I keep right next to the kitchen door, because I use them almost every day. In fact, it rarely gets very large because I harvest it so often. They are both faithful blessings that I have come to count on.
Sage
Sage for pork dishes, especially – yummmmmm! A little bit goes a long way, but that fresh flavor is unmatched.
Grapefuit Tree with Periwinkles
John’s Grapefruit tree. He planted it last year, and it almost died, but we cut it back and it came back healthier than ever – and giving forth fruit this year!
Ponderosa Lemon
Our enormous Ponderosa Lemon tree. You cannot imagine the size of those lemons – about the size of a Texas Grapefruit! They are a novelty in our garden, and we’ve had many laughs with friends who have never seen such freaky fruit! Oh, but they are delicious – much sweeter and lighter in taste than a regular lemon, and their blooms are so fragrant!
Spaghetti Squash
Cantaloupe
Firsts. These are the first of our summer harvest of Spaghetti Squash and Cantaloupe. I was a little impatient for them, but they eventually produced – and we can’t wait to eat ‘em up! 
Heirloom Tomato
Heirloom Tomato – I think this one is called Brandywine. What’s better than a delicious home-grown tomato? When I can get them before the birds do, I’m a happy, happy girl! When I can’t, we have happy, happy birds!
Hibiscus
This is our red Hibiscus. Because the boys and I are all color-blind, John gets to enjoy this plant the most (we have difficultly seeing the color red.) But, he often draws my attention to the blooms and when I move in close to them, they knock me out with their beauty!
Asparagus Fern
This is one of the two huge Asparagus Ferns that mother gave me from her own gorgeous garden. It always reminds me of her love for plants and it makes me strive to be a better gardener. I love them all the more because they were once so very much loved by her.
Periwinkle
My dear Periwinkles. They are everywhere in my garden – hanging baskets, pots on the patio, underplanted around my citrus trees – even coming up in the cracks of the sidewalk! I first was introduced to them by John’s mother, Rose, who grew them in great profusion along the winding walkway to their front door, and they always struck me as beautiful but informal and friendly – just like she is!
Charlie in the Vegetable Garden
This is Charlie. You’ve met him before, but he’s our constant companion in the garden. Here he is sniffing around the vegetables – probably looking for a lizard or that toad-friend that he met last month.
These are just some of the backyard blessings that we counted this morning. Blessings really are everywhere we look, aren’t they? And when we slow down, breathe them in to our spirits, and give thanks to God for them one-by-one, it helps to create a more grateful heart, and a more contented life.
