Thursday, April 12, 2007

Apartment Gardener

I struggle with discontentment. I live in an apartment but I want to live in a small town or out in the country. I really want to live a more environmentally sound life. I would love to have a yard full of vegetables. For now I have no choice about my living situation but I do have a choice how I live and I control my attitude. My apartment complex may not provide a way for me to recycle but I can save cans and paper, which I take to recycle bins at nearby churches. I also have turned my balcony into a vegetable garden. I have found basil, parsley, kale, baby bitter greens and of course aloe vera grow very well. Tomatoes and peppers don’t do very well. I don’t think they are getting enough hours of sun. I have also had a tough time growing mint which is frustrating since mint grew on the side of the house I grew up in and we could never get rid of it even though my mom thought of it as a weed. This year I am trying broccoli raab, arugula, and cilantro. I also have a couple of nasturtium plants, which happen to be edible flowers. So I may not have a home where I can share space with others and I may not have a yard for a vegetable garden. I may not have a lot of what I desire, but that has not stopped me from doing something. And when my attitude goes down hill, when I get really frustrated that AOCCCI has not moved to the place I believe God intends it to be, I spend time in prayer. I repent of my attitude and seek God’s direction for today. Then I go out on my balcony and water my vegetable garden.

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