The Summer Garden

I’ve been gardening a lot this summer. And because I’m working from home I sit on the patio – do a phone call, eat my lunch - and watch the garden a lot too. I think because I’m spending so much time in the yard, I’m noticing the rhythm of the season. Our vision was extra grand this spring – two new raised beds, vegetables and re-imagining a yard without the giant silver maple. Envisioning what the garden could be, starting seeds, and expecting beautiful flowers was exciting. The initial frantic push to plant was buoyed by the anticipation of something new. Long evenings in the yard were rewarding.

But now the planting is done, and the tending has begun. I stake the tomatoes and deadhead the marigolds. I’m weeding and sometimes watering, changing direction by giving up on some plants and making space for others that are flourishing beyond what I expected. Some days it’s a grind. It’s hot. I can’t always see how an hour of weeding makes much difference. I think, maybe the garden just grows regardless of what I do.

A similar rhythm underlies community change. There’s energy at the beginning. The vision is big and the motivation to participate is strong. But when the vision is transformative, the work – the tending – is slow and hard. Individual actions don’t always feel impactful. Some days the vision loses clarity. But the day-to-day consistent steady work creates the change. And interestingly, these days of small actions based more on commitment to the vision than measurable progress, give rise to the unexpected – new ideas come, new people arrive to help, and sometimes the vision itself gets better.

-Julia