Growing into Small


Fall is the season that gets me thinking that I'd like to grow a garden.

Even though I live in a townhouse with no yard to speak of, and should face the stark truth that I’m not very attentive to the plants I currently have on my courtyard, I still wonder if I could grow a few little herbs.

Just something small.


I know I could be a gardener {if I really wanted to} since I have a curly bright green hose hanging beside my door ready to shower my plants with water-love. But I still forget to soak their parched soil sometimes, figuring an afternoon Florida thunderstorm will do the job for me.

And maybe I should really be thinking about planting a garden in the spring, not the fall, after all.


But it's autumn that reminds me of my aunt’s home-grown tomatoes.

She would have loved to live on a farm but instead she had a few spindly tomato stalks that she carefully tended, planted by the side of her suburban Pittsburgh home.

They produced big red juicy tomatoes and I can still remember how delicious they smelled and tasted, with nothing but a sprinkle of salt and pepper.

The tomatoes I buy now in the grocery store taste nothing like those tomatoes that I remember from my childhood.

And it makes me wonder if my aunt was doing something wonderfully insignificant in growing a few glorious tomatoes and sharing them with us.



I think there's something rich and deep in the soil of the simple, unexceptional and ordinary.

Some of my favorite places to eat are farm-to-table cafes.

I love the rustic farmhouse decor and I enjoy the enthusiasm of the servers as they wax eloquent about their dishes made from fresh, local ingredients. And there's always something unique to appreciate, like the living wall of greens in one eatery where the servers went to pick the lettuce for my salad.

It makes me think that our creative efforts - -writing, cooking, gardening, painting, making music or making coffee -- are not too small, too insignificant or too simple to make an impression.




There's a dismissive soul-seeping line of thought today that only big things matter, large audiences are worth more, and only those with many likes, shares and followers are deemed successful.

But that would be missing a beautiful truth, like the one my blogging friend Heather affirmed for me.

She unintentionally validated some thoughts that had been taking root in my heart all summer, just about ready to flourish into full bloom when she sent me a lovely gift.

I unwrapped it and there, staring back at me were tall and bold words that articulated what I'd been thinking these past few months.

Do small things with great love.



I'm no longer looking for something else that might be better down the road because today holds all that I need to be happy, hopeful and heartened.

I'm not restlessly yearning to be far away, when everything I love is right here, so close.

I'm not wishing I could be someone else -- or even aspiring to be a more talented, capable and nicer version of myself, when God created me in his very own image and invites me to come see, search and find all that I need and hope to be and desire in him.

And I think it just might be all the small things that expand, widen and grow my life.


Like the memory of my aunt's garden tomatoes.

I've been thinking that maybe just ordering food from a garden is as good as growing something on my own.

So for my birthday my sister gifted me with a subscription to a jam-of-the-month club from a local canning company.

My first jar of preserves should arrive any day now.

I have no idea what the mystery flavor will be, but I'm quite sure I'll enjoy the fruit of someone else’s labor so much better than my own.



I'm joining my friends at Holley Gerth's place at Coffee for your Heart.


Comments

  1. Valerie,
    So glad I was your neighbour this morning at Holley's place. I'm so much like you. I often think in the fall that next spring I'm going to start a garden again. When my kids were little I grew lettuce, sweet peppers and tomatoes. They all tasted so good, but those were different times when I wasn't working outside of the home. I felt a release when I read your resolve just to buy fresh produce from someone else and enjoy it's sweetness. I kind of have a personality that always feels I should be doing more so I resonate with your feelings :) Praying you have an amazing day in the wonderful sunshine state!
    ~Sherry Stahl
    xoxo

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    1. Hi Sherry,
      Oh I love it that you grew lettuce, peppers and tomatoes -- you inspire me! I probably will not have the resolve to follow through on my little garden idea but I may change my mind after tasting the preserves that are coming my way. I reduced some blueberries and sugar on the stove the other day and they tasted pretty good! :) Thank you so much for sharing your garden endeavors with me -- and maybe some spring day we'll both actually plant a little garden?! xoxo

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  2. My parents always had a full garden, with so much produce they had to give more away than they kept. I didn't appreciate it enough back then (especially when I had to pick and shell). But though I love growing flowers, I've never really wanted my own garden. We tried growing corn and tomatoes a few years, but it just wasn't worth the hassle. Now I just enjoy the freshness that real farmers can provide. :)

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    1. Hi Lisa,
      What a treat to hear you are a true gardener with plenty of experience, and it must have been amazing to have all that fresh-grown goodness growing up! I have no doubt that growing veggies is more idyllic sounding than it seems -- I just want the result and lack the resolve for the hard part of growing, watering and tending! xo

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  3. I love this, Valerie: "there's something rich and deep in the soil of the simple, unexceptional and ordinary." That's so true- we can easily be drawn into thinking that things have to be big to be significant but I think often the little acts of kindness and words of love can have more impact than we realise.

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    1. Hi Lesley,
      Kindness and love do have more value and impact than we could ever imagine, don't they? Especially when it's more challenging for us to offer that in difficult situations! xo

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  4. I love this powerful message, Valerie. This is such an encouraging reminder - "there's something rich and deep in the soil of the simple, unexceptional and ordinary." You have such a creative way with words that add such depth to the message. What a beautiful gift your friend sent you! God knew you needed it. :) We all need that reminder, don't we? We strive so hard to be "better" when God just wants us to be ourselves. I love how you bring out that even your aunt's gift of tomatoes is something done with great love. Thank you! Love and hugs!

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    1. Hi Trudy,
      I would imagine you might have some experience with growing vegetables, since you live in the midwest and I'd love to hear about them! The gift from Heather was so impactful especially since she had no idea about my thoughts this summer! :) I love how God works, that way! xoxo

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    2. When our kids were still at home and we lived on an acreage, we had a big garden, and we did a lot of canning and freezing. I miss those days. It's funny how now our kids can, even though they grumbled when they were younger. One of our sons keeps his own garden and cans a lot. Another son and our daughter also can, but most often with produce they get from others. This summer is the first time I have ever tasted a yellow tomato. Our daughter brought us some tomatoes, and she said the yellow one didn't appeal to her, so she gave it to us along with some red ones. It really wasn't so bad, but I still prefer the red. There is nothing like home-grown tomatoes. :) By the way, as always, I love the photos, too. Hugs!

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    3. Trudy,
      I love it that your kids carry on the tradition of canning, even though they didn't find it valuable when they were younger! Isn't that the way it is sometimes? The things that seem not worthwhile to us growing up become much more important to us when we're older. Oh my mouth is just watering for some home-grown tomatoes! xo

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  5. I always love your posts. And those photos are gorgeous. You made me think toward the end of the writing... about small things - there is such a longing to be something else, smarter, prettier, thinner, taller, shorter - and the delusion if only life would be better. That's the same line of thinking that got Eve and Adam in trouble...he never quits does he? That lousy enemy of our soul. Side note: Tomatoes in big pots on the terrace are mighty tasty - and fall is the time to garden in FL. xo

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    1. Hi Susan,
      Thanks for your sweet words about my photos -- can you believe that pumpkin photo is from the market in Rome? I was surprised they had pumpkins there! {Although they were there in the spring, not fall!} I'm loving your idea of tomatoes in pots -- maybe even I could find a little success in that! Even just one tomato . . . :) xoxo

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  6. It was such a grey dark winter last year out here that I decided to plant seeds indoors and try to grow them with a grow light with the hopes that they would sprout and remind me that spring was coming!! Haha A few fared well inside but then wilted or were eaten by bugs as soon as I tried to transplant them! So I think I'm going to take a note and enjoy ordering some farm fresh ingredients and just enjoy. Hopefully I can accept that the small efforts I make in love are the most important and beautiful, too.

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    1. Christy,
      How nice it is to see you here again! :) Of course you are making me laugh about using a grow light and then having bugs eat up your garden efforts! But at least your seeds actually grew into tiny stalks! I think I'm determined to try to grow a few tomatoes in post (as Susan's comment suggests) just to see what happens. At the very least, it might be entertaining! xoxo

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  7. Hi Valerie ~ How good God is to give us kindred spirit relationships who know just what we need at just the right time.

    Framed words of wisdom, jars of jam, fresh produce from the garden, memories that stay close to our hearts.

    And blog posts just like this one.

    You're blessing me at the end of a very long day. I think I'll return in the morning just to re-read once again. Your posts are like that, you know ...

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    1. Hi Linda,
      Thanks so much for your very sweet words! I must admit talking about food and sharing photos of food are some of my favorite posts so I'm so glad you enjoyed it! xo

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  8. Dear Valerie,
    Oh, yes, what an amazing truth, to do those small things with great love. This statement just underlined what I have felt so often lately myself: "There's a dismissive soul-seeping line of thought today that only big things matter." Wow. And when I give into those awful feelings, then everything just stops inside of me. I am so thankful that Jesus looks at things so differently than we do! And, He, being our Master Gardener, tends to the smallest details in the gardens of our hearts. Thank you for sharing these beautiful thoughts and images today! You know that I love anything garden related! :-) xoxo

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    1. Hi Bettie,
      I know you love nature and creatures and gardens (just like Trudy does!) so I know you could relate to my tiny urges to grow a garden! Even if I could grow one tomato in a pot on my courtyard I think it would be a cause for celebration. :) I love your thoughts about God being the master gardener in our lives, too, since after all he is the one who created the very first garden so long ago! xoxo

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  9. "dismissive soul-seeping line of thought" lovely turn of a phrase

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  10. Awww!! I've been carrying your email in my mind about this very topic waiting to have the time to write you back and I was pleasantly surprised to see it had grown into this post!!! And I too get the gardening bug every year but as my houseplants can attest, I'm not the most skilled caregiver...! What beautiful sentiments- "I'm not wishing I could be someone else -- or even aspiring to be a more talented, capable and nicer version of myself, when God created me in his very own image and invites me to come see, search and find all that I need and hope to be and desire in him." <--- And isn't that the key-- that we find out who we are IN Him one small step at a time as he calls us to himself and teaches us how to love Him and our neighbor in the most minuscule of ways... ♥ I'm so glad to have been on this journey with you the past few years Valerie-- watching as the seeds God has been sowing in you start to flourish... ♥ Amen to all of this ! xxoo

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    1. Heather,
      Your beautiful gift inspired this post and I can't thank you enough for the reminder that now sits atop my mantel! :) I think we wait for seeds to flourish more often than we can imagine throughout our lives and give up in despair only to see that was something was ready to burst into bloom, even if it wasn't quite what we expected. So grateful to have taken this blogging journey and meeting lovely women like you has made it such a lovely surprise! xoxo

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  11. Oh, how I love and enjoy coming here and visiting with you, sweet friend! I am always so uplifted and blessed by your thoughts and beautiful photography, and your way with words just draws me in and makes me think and feel as if I am right there experiencing the things you write about. You have so many gifts, and all who come here are abundantly blessed by the generous way you share them. Reading about your aunt's small area "garden" makes me think of how I could try something like this. We have downsized our lives in such a drastic way...we no longer have the 2 acres we lived on and where my husband planted such a big garden on for so many years, but we have a balcony, and I am thinking we could possibly do some container gardening right here! Your post also made me think of the Scripture that tells us not to despise the day of small beginnings. Sometimes the biggest positive changes in our lives start with a tiny, little "hello" or a smile or kind gesture...some sort of small, seemingly insignificant seed that is planted or even "scattered" with not more than a passing thought that grows into a beautiful relationship or situation that ends up blessing our lives in such wonderful ways. I know God is working all things together for your good, and big blessings await you up ahead! Praying for you and so thankful for your blog and friendship.

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    1. Cheryl,
      I hope your family is finding peace through this difficult time of loss -- praying for you! Your words strike a chord with me today that the scattered seeds or what we may regard as insignificant can grow into something quite valuable with abundant blessings for us -- and others. Pondering these words of yours today and sending love to you! xo

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  12. I always want an herb garden, but I kill any plant. I even overwatered a cactus! Small things really are best. It is easy to mess up the big things, because there are so many parts to work on. Focusing on one thing can lead to perfection. 😃

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    1. Sarah,
      So maybe we should endeavor to try to grow a tiny herb garden together? :)

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  13. What a timeless gift from your aunt--the constant memory of the taste home-grown tomatoes. And even though she didn't have the farm she wanted, she still did what she could to garden her dreams right where she was at! I know I have an internal struggle of being satisfied by the small things over being 'successful' by measuring the number in my tribe. And, unfortunately, sometimes being motivated by the number instead of the encouragement of one, or being a blessing to one. But today I wait for a cake to cool to try out some new decorating skills that I hope will bring a smile to my nieces face later today. My writing has stalled, yet your post has encouraged me that my writing need not to have to be perfect now. Rather, "be better down the road because today holds all that I need to be happy, hopeful and heartened." You'll have to let us know what your preserve flavour surprise ended up being this month!

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    1. Hi Lynn,
      I'm hoping your writing pause is only a break for you to consider new and fresh things and it was so lovely to hear that you have a cake cooling and will try out some new creative talents with your nieces as you frost the cake -- those are the small and beautiful things in life, aren't they? And I will indeed let you know what my jam of the month flavor is -- I can't wait to see it myself! :)

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    2. Hi Valerie- so happy to visit here tonight, Kids have been home for fall break and our home and hearts have been full.but I have had little time for much else. I dream of having a wonderful garden too! I have tried so often and somehow it just doesn’t ever turn out like I imagine or want.(long scraggly half dead plants with little fruit!!) I love your thoughts here and am thankful for this word today! I fall into the wrong thinking that small doesn’t matter as much as big. I get discouraged and even quit sometimes , feeling unseen and unimportant. I love what you write, "I'm not wishing I could be someone else -- or even aspiring to be a more talented, capable and nicer version of myself, when God created me in his very own image and invites me to come see, search and find all that I need and hope to be and desire in him.” So good I think I need to put this quote in my kitchen window. In this crazy world of social media it always looks like everyone is more successful and having way more fun than me! It can get me down because I am in the habit to compare. Thanks for encouraging me to be content and remember that I am created by our lovely kind and good God. He made me this way for a reason. I think I will join you in growing into small! Happy birthday dear friend. YOU are such a gift! xoxox

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    3. I forgot to say I love these pictures! Produce is so beautiful! They make me happy and want to paint or draw or something! ;) :)

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    4. Hi Susie,
      Beautiful produce makes me happy too and I even have a painting of produce hanging in my kitchen that my mother found at a thrift shop for me! I can only imagine how an artist like you would be inspired by beautiful food! :) I love it that you said you'll join me in growing into small - there's so much to appreciate there, isn't there? It does feel as if only big things are noticed and celebrated but I think there's a special knack, a talent even, to doing life sort of small. How else can we appreciate the simple things? So glad you've had family home with your house and hearts full! xoxo

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  14. I agree... homegrown tomatoes (which I have tried, unsuccessfully, to grow) are the best. Especially when topped with garlic salt, pepper and cottage cheese. :-) This post is beautiful, Valerie. I'm so thankful for the contentment that God grows in us, for the freedom and peace that comes from doing small things with great love. Hugs, friend!

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    1. Hi Lois,
      I have not tried cottage cheese topping the tomatoes but garlic salt -- yes, the best! xoxo

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