Prepping the soil

It only took a few unplanned 50-degree days and my thoughts are now turning to my urban “farm.” Last year, it was a 4×4 square plot of land that held 16 different kinds of vegetables. The onions, tomatoes, peppers, and the lettuce did especially well. But the beans died on the vine and the carrots were too narrowly planted.

This year, I’m “doubling the farm” and will have an 8×8 plot.

I’ve got the framing built and the seeds bought. But before anything else, I need to think about the soil. It has to have the right mix, the right nutrients. In the past, I’ve been guilty of just dropped seeds in regular old topsoil, only to see the little plants die or never seed.

To tell the truth, I’ve never really been good about prepping the soil in anything. I’ve rushed into just about everything in life, wanting to relish in the thrills and joys of the journey. But because I didn’t  plan, all I ended up with were withered flowers and wilted plants. I’ve lost friends, a marriage, relationships and even my own soul for a while because I was so concerned about the fruit and not the soil.

In this life, we are all really fellow farmers, working toward producing good crops. We might not be in the fields, but we are in the factories and office buildings, retail stores and homes, putting out a product. Metaphorically, none of us wants bad fruit. Nobody wants the bad produce of a harvest gone wrong.

I have spent a lifetime thinking about character, working on disciplining my thoughts and trying to make the right choices, but still, I don’t always turn out the best harvest. In fact, many of my best efforts are just rotten. I had the best seeds and worst soil

My friend Tim isn’t a farmer, but he’s had his share of both good and bad harvests in his life. He’s honest about his failures, and humble about his victories.

‘I have found the only way to produce a good crop is to have fertile soil,” he said, “and the only way to get that is to constantly turn over the soil and add lots of manure.”

Last year I started a compost pile. With kitchen scraps, lawn trimmings, egg shells, and coffee grounds all jumbled together and now it’s a beautiful mound of soil,  dark brown and full of nutrients. All the leftovers — the things I thought wouldn’t amount to anything are part of that collection. And out of that, will come a rich harvest. Who would have thought?

So, maybe next time, when my life gets turned over, I’ll remember the coming fruit. Maybe next time when someone shovels a smelly load into my life, I’ll thank them for helping me out with the final product.

Fertile soil. It’s not as easy as I thought.