Day 20 - Another Post in Which I Find Deep Spiritual Truths Via Yard Work
When we bought our house over ten years ago, the previous owners had invested a lot of time and money on the landscaping. Which would have been great if we had had the time and knowledge to keep it up. But since my gardening skills are limited, and since I had a one year old and a three year old to care for, the landscaping went wild.
The past two weekends Paul pulled out more of the bushes that came with the house. (We gotten rid of the hated holly bushes years ago!) From the original plantes, we now only have an azalea (which I like) and another bush/tree that looks decent. He pulled out scraggly overgrown bushes and a perfectly healthy sago palm that I had never really liked. We planted a few annuals and bought some camellias which we will plant this week. Then we'll order some small rose plants. We're even putting in an arch.
What struck me today as we worked on making our house beautiful was how we had lived with plants we didn't like for over ten years! We saw those plants as we drove into the driveway every day and didn't like them. But we just kept them there, hoping the Gardening Fairy (sister to the elusive Cleaning Fairy) would come and make our yard beautiful. I never pushed for changer because Paul already works so hard and because I didn't know what else we could do in that space.
Since we've cleared out those plants, our house already looks better! We have worked hard these past two weekends, but we are liking the results. When we finish I will have a home exterior that I love, not one I just tolerate.
As I realized how much better I like my house now, I couldn't help but wonder which attitudes, thoughts, and behaviors I've been putting up with in my life. Things I don't even like, but seem too big to deal with. Things that I don't know how to change or remove. Sometimes I think that, like our landscaping, I just need to start the thing. Because when I look at my life I want to see the things that I WANT to be there, things that are beautiful and that complement who God has made me to be, not just some out-of-control characteristics that I've put up with for too long because I was scared to tackle them.
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