The Spirituality of Dirt

So many holy people have written about the spirituality of dirt.  They name time in the garden as a regular re-grounding in the presence of God.  God, they say, is waiting in the soil to be discovered.

When I'm not in the garden, I feel the same way, but when I'm actually digging stubborn roots out of rock hard soil, I'm more aware of sore muscles, fine dust covering my skin, and the impending heat.  Now in mid-summer, we do our gardening in the morning, right after milking.  Even then, we still come in sopping and overheated.

The garden does have spiritual lessons to offer.  God is a god of abundance with harvests of 10, 20, and 100 fold.  These peppers started from little seeds indoors. The plants have grown strong and are putting on fruit that will fill our freezer.  We may have provided good growing conditions like water, soil, and weeding, but God does the growing.  God gives the abundance.

And if we forget, God offers reminders.  The Lord gives and the Lord takes away.  We filled this row with green bean seed and only one plant came up.  A lone bean plant sits in an empty row.  This will not be a 100 fold harvest.  Perhaps the seeds were too old.  Perhaps the soil conditions weren't good.  Or perhaps God just felt we needed a reminder, lest we think that our food is a result of OUR efforts and not a divine gift.

But when it's time to garden, I forget all these things.  I just work.  I  look for the next bed that needs weeding.  I search for the next crop that needs picked.  And I hurry to beat the heat.