Green Beans Galore

The green beans i planted in May yielded about three plants. What did i expect from 10-year-old seeds? So i re-planted green beans two months ago, in the middle of July. I now have a bumper crop of green beans.

Just in time. My sweetie who loves broccoli is so tired of eating broccoli from my 40 broccoli plants that green beans are a welcome sight.

These late beans are a good example of the fall garden. We can have a spring garden, a summer garden, and a fall garden. Usually, i don't get around to planting fall crops, but this year i was inspired by my neighbor. If she can do it, i can do it. And the green beans did it!

It's never too late to plant ourselves in meditation. We might have a spring garden of college and beginning our career, and then a summer garden of marriage and family. I missed that season myself and went straight to the fall garden of following my spiritual path. Let me tell you, the yield of that spiritual garden is bountiful. Just like these late green beans.

Northern Orange Tree

A friend who was moving gave us his orange tree. Okay. Here in the North Country, "orange tree" means 3 feet tall in a pot with an orange (that is not yet orange) the size of a grape.

I place it next to my banana tree, which hasn't produced a banana or even a flower in 22 years.

We might imagine what a full-grown mediation practice looks like--a beatific smile on our always-calm faces. When really what we have is a very small practice, perhaps just 10 or 15 minutes at a time, not even every day.

The fruit of our spiritual life may seem quite small. Well, yes, i did hold my tongue in that situation. And i was kind to that person in the convenience store. And i did give some time to help a friend.

We start where we are. The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. The spiritual journey commences with a moment of mindfulness. Now.