The Gardener

My Dad the Gardener

I have known a gardener since the day that I was born.

I’ve watched him tend to gardens, getting rid of weeds and thorns.

He made sure plants had water and he kept the pests away.

Spending time out in the garden was the highlight of his day.

He tried to teach his children to love the garden too.

He’d send us out to work, and tell us what to do.

I liked the little rabbits, that ate up the green beans.

I didn’t want to have to pick, and eat those yucky things!

But I did like the potatoes, that grew down in the ground,

And I like watermelon that grew from a tidy mound.

Corn is quite delicious, especially when it’s new

And I enjoy a good tomato from the garden too.

I can’t say that it’s fun getting popcorn off the cob

But knocking down the popcorn plants was kind of a fun job.

Working in the heat really isn’t very fun,

But getting up before the heat -- well that just isn’t done!

My Dad got up that early, and my Grandma did that too

But that just isn’t something that I really want to do!

For years I watched my sisters enjoy working in their yards

But I avoided mine because -- well, that work is hard!

I thought that I was breaking a tradition that we had

Of a long line of gardeners that did not start with Dad.

But it turns out that I learned a bit of stuff along the way.

And once my schedule slowed down, gardening fit into my day.

Then I found that I liked gardening, at least some of the time.

And I have a pretty garden that I get to claim as mine.

And I like to think of Dad as I work out in the yard

And his example of someone who liked to work quite hard.

He prayed over his plants, because he feels it helps them grow.

Just like he prays for me.  This is something that I know.

I really love this gardener that I’ve known since I was small.

And I hope this Father’s Day is the best Father’s Day of all!