Lessons, garden style

[Originally published in Woodbury Bulletin on 8/29/2007]

My last column was about the joy of gardening. In this column, I want to talk about some lessons I have learned from my gardening.

You reap what you sow
This Biblical truth is common sense, but is worth a reminder. The harvest that I reap depends on the kind of seeds I sow. If I sow tomato seeds, I will not reap potatoes.

What I do comes back to me. Whatever I give out to others, others will eventually give back to me. Everything that happens to me is a result of my own actions.

If I treat others with love and respect, others will treat me with love and respect. I reap what I sow in my garden. I also reap what I sow in my life.

There is a time and season for everything
I planted some seeds of a certain vegetable in spring. They grew pretty fast and were ready for consumption within a month.

After they were all gone, I wanted to plant some more. So I planted the same kind of seeds in summer, but nothing came out. I don’t know why the same kind of seeds didn’t germinate at all.

I realized that there is a time and season for planting and harvesting. I have to do it at the right time. If I miss the desired time for planting and harvesting, it wouldn’t be good.

Everything in life has its time and season. If we don’t teach kids certain things when they are little, we can miss the window of opportunities and will not be able to do it when they are older.

More is not necessary better
In May, I planted some Chinese vegetable seeds. Out of my inexperience and greed, I planted more seeds than I should. I wanted more. So I thought the more seeds I planted, the more vegetables I could harvest.

The result was I did get more plants, but they didn’t grow well. Because the plants were too crowded together, they didn’t get enough space and sun to grow bigger and stronger. Instead of growing the roots deep down into the soil, the plants grew skinny and tall to compete for space and sun.

A few seeds landed in bigger space. They grew to be much bigger and better, because they have more space to grow.

More is not necessary better. This truth applies in real life too.

Weeds grow faster than the desired plants
I have to pull weeds in my garden constantly. They grow surprisingly faster than my vegetables. It’s easier to get what I don’t desire than what I do desire.

Good things in life happen slowly and are built slowly over time, while bad things happen quickly without much effort.

We all know it’s so much easy to gain a few pounds than to lose a few pounds. It’s so much easier to start a bad habit than to start a good habit.

I need to watch out for the weeds in my life and snap them before they can grow bigger. I need to work hard on getting the desired plants.

Constant maintenance and care is needed
Any desired plants and garden need constant care. I can’t plant some seeds and forget about them and then expect to reap a good harvest.

Planting seeds is just one of the first steps in gardening. There are a lot more things to do. I have to water and weed regularly to ensure their healthy growth.

The same thing happens in life. I can’t get married and expect the marriage will work out fine without constant work. I can’t give birth to a child and expect him to grow up by himself without raising him properly.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure
I need to pull weeds constantly, and do so when they are small so they don’t takeover my vegetable plants or take away the nutrients my plants need. I think mulching is a good idea. A few hours spent mulching is better than many hours weeding.

No work, no reward
My reward comes form my hard work. Without my initial planting of the seeds, watering and weeding them on a regular basis, I wouldn’t be able to enjoy the result. I can’t expect reward without putting in any efforts.

No work, no reward. This same principle applies to work life as well as our personal relationships in life.

Life doesn’t always give instantaneous rewards
Gardening takes time and efforts. There is not instant rewards and gratification. Many times, out efforts are not paid off until some time in the future.

Letting go of control
A plant needs soil, water and sun to grow and grow well. I can provide soil and water, but I can’t make the sun shine.

In real life, there are certain things I can control, but there are a lot more things that are out of my control. I need to learn to let go.

Life is a miracle
It’s simply a miracle to watch a plant grow out of a tiny seed. There is nothing more miraculous than watch how living things grow.

First there is the seed, and then a tiny seedling comes out. It grows bigger and bigger in front of my eyes.

Unlike building a house, where I can see how it is build, one brick at a time, I can’t see how the seed grows, but I know it’s growing.

Just as I know for sure, there is an architect and a builder behind the house, I know for sure, there is a Creator behind all living things, even if I can’t see it.

When I realize how miraculous life is, I also realize there must be a Creator in the Universe.