So last weekend, my folks stopped by to drop off the kids, after taking them for the weekend, so we could go hang out at Lifelight. Thanks, Mom & Jim!
Anyway, on Sunday, they came up in time to check out our new church, Embrace, then we ordered Chinese food for lunch, and had some time to kill before going out to see Matt perform with Rachelle Hope on the Triple Shot Stage at Lifelight in the afternoon.
Mom & I went over to the greenhouse, just a few blocks away (I know, DANGER!), where all their perennials were on sale for half off. Fall clearance, I guess. After much piddling around, and talking to a colleague who happens to be a fine gardener herself, we wheeled our wagon out of there with some new stuff to plant. That, along with the cuttings that mom had brought from her yard, meant that my Labor Day was labor-intensive.
So I slept in for a while on Monday morning, then dinked around for a while, and finally got out to start planting somewhere after 10 am.
OK, so this is what I put in the ground: two Burning Bushes (they'll turn bright red in a few weeks).
Fitting, because God spoke to Moses through a burning bush... and God has really spoken to me through this whole process of doing this one thing that I never really wanted to do in the first place. These two bushes will be a reminder that this is where God speaks to me.
We also bought a tree. Not a big one, but I've been wanting to put a tree in here:
(ha! This is a "pre-weeded" picture. It looks much cleaner around there now!)and not just any tree, I wanted a weeping tree. Ideally, I'd love a weeping cherry, but there's not enough sun to support one there, so we got a Weeping Pussy Willow.
It's pretty small right now, and it won't actually get much taller than this, though it will get wider. Here it is from a distance. Doesn't look too impressive yet!
Today (a week later), I had Matt move some big rocks up onto that level, and will eventually put a bunch of hostas and other pleasant shade-dwelling plants. I would also like to plant something that will drape down over the edges of this rounded terrace layer. This will be the area that reminds me that it's OK to have times of sadness, when you can't see the sun. It will at least look like a quiet place, even though it's very noisy out there right next to that busy intersection that also has occasional train crossings, and ambulances with sirens blaring making their way to the nearby hospital.
OK, so this one, I had to plant somewhere where I will see it frequently, because I LOVE it.
It's some kind of weird hydrangea hybrid called "Twist and Shout." The plant I got is huge, and the soil was treated in such a way that some of the blooms are purple/blue and some are pink. It's just so cute!
This is the symbol of joy for me. I didn't realize when I bought all these that I was symbolizing God turning my mourning into dancing, but look at that! :)
So today when I was out mulching for winter protection from the feet and feet of snow these poor babies will be under for months and months (ugh! Do we have to think about that yet?), and watering, Maia had a neighborhood friend over. "What does this plant mean in the Bible, Mom?" Joy. "What about this one?" Friends. "And the weeds are sin, right?"
I remember symbolism being a pretty abstract concept that I didn't really start to understand until high school American Literature class (thanks, Mr. Arends). So, I don't know if she really gets what's going on in my heart, but she gets that one thing can have two meanings.
If I can teach her that and how to sing harmony, I'll feel like I've instilled at least a little bit of me in her! :)
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