skip to main |
skip to sidebar
there simply is no tomato redder than mine! that is the statement! bwahahaha!
fact is, in our local town market, people would instantly recognize the bidibidi tomatoes, (they named my produce after me. bwahahaha!), they are just the freshest, reddest and tastiest of all.
all the rest of the tomatoes pale in comparison, and i know why. . . i know. i just know.
my friend jess had an early morning question for me today, asked me: why are your tomatoes so beautiful? we planted the same crop on the same place when i was still in there, but we never had those! i think we never even had a harvest. what is the secret?
i quickly typed in my reply, afraid he might get offline without reading my answer: yes, my tomatoes are the best and i will let you in on the secret - t.l.c. really.
he types in his snappy counter: oh, i have to agree, when we were gardening then, we were hating what we were doing! the boss even had to scare us back to the fields to till. bwahahaha!
that was indeed funny, but great truths are in it. and if you, too, ask me, i will give you the same answer: t.l.c. really. bwahahaha!
so, yesterday was a harvest day. . . i carried the basket and plucked off each and every bright and red and ready tomato off its plant, making sure the crowns are on them.
i do it with the gentlest of motion and with the quietest whisper of gratitude, (there were 80 tomatoes in the lot, i must have whispered 80 times, my gratitude. bwahahaha!)
and with the brightest and most vivid of joy. i feel my cheeks are as red! with glee!
i walked further and picked some tender and young okra, in its green finger-length seed pods. and sprigs of basil.
by 4 in the afternoon, when the sky's sculling billowy and swelling and hope-full, we were ready. and the force's presence makes the joy over this late afternoon repast sacred. it becomes a feast!
after the last of all the sweet was scarfed right down, i wandered out quiet toward the green path, again, looked around me, and it was there over the greens:
the whole world is set out like a banquet - and i nod.
i can almost hear the whisper: did you like it? i made it just for you.
my cravings silenced.
thank you, i know you know ilysm! bwahahaha! ♥ ♥ ♥
they will soon blush! i know! i just know! and unlike me, i blush because am shy (bwahahaha!), they will blush because they burst into joy!
i am choked up, and it has nothing to do with the air.
it has to do with men and food and that the first man was a farmer.
it has to do with our story coming out of soil. it has to do with tilling the earth and reaping a harvest and it is what goethe said, "sowing is not as difficult as reaping".
there is ultimately no crop without unwavering commitment.
and slowly, it strikes me, rattles me like a wind through dried bean pods - when i turn the earth, i revolutionize the world.
when i work dirt, i cultivate a life needing patience, kneeling to providence: i cannot drive a seed to grow! and i cannot demand a sky to give! bwahahaha!
but what i know for sure is, some good force does! bwahahaha!
thank you! ilysm! i know you know it! ♥ ♥ ♥.
sometimes, i catch myself looking and trying to have fun. a lot of times, too, i know people are doing the same. i realize fully, that fun is totally subjective.
for me, it takes some time of quiet and reflection to know that reasons to have fun and happiness are as abundant as the stars in the heavens and the sand on the beach here on earth. (reminds me, i have to beach soon! bwahahaha!)
what i know for sure is, when i look for fun and happiness, i easily find it. and i do not have to think hard to know why. . .my heart is open to all those bits and moments of fun and happiness. it is simply abundant in my part of the world. bwahahaha!
everyday, my grinning life takes my hand and tugs for me to come, for a walk, a dance under the rain - isn't it true that sometimes, the most grown-up thing to do is to become more like a child?
thank you! just love how we make each other laugh! bwahahaha! ♥ ♥ ♥
today, i am grateful for the gatherings i had:
the fruits
the people
the places
the grace showered me simply never fails to catch me by surprise!
thank you! ilysm! ♥ ♥ ♥
harvest is always a special time of the season, when the earth fills with colours and fragrances and textures. it is a time of a new life, a time to celebrate, a time of joy! a time to rejoice!
when we set out to commence what seemed like an impossible task: make a garden out of a forsaken patch of dirt, we were tempted to throw in the fork and the spade a lot of times.
what with the floods coming in and the flock feasting on the plants at the garden, when they were just about to sprout?
but, we held and trudged on, one unusual instance when stubbornness is on top of the list of positive attributes. bwahahaha!
most of them spectators expected to find scraps, some even asked what we expected to get from it all? what they may never know is, what we discovered during the journey is stunning, amazing, astonishing!
beautiful tomatoes blushing in the sunlight, with the slightest imperfections in their skin.
gorgeous gourds hanging by their delicate vines, their tendrils looking up, seeking the light!
lady fingers, string beans, soft and succulent!
radishes that are not quite the right size and shape and age! bwahahaha! a learning experience.
and we have not even tasted the bitter gourd that tastes sweet and crunchy, the winged bean that will take us to flights of fancy, the squash and the sweet corn - soon to be soup for the soul, the lemon grass, the peanuts and the herbs and the spices.
in the end, which is not quite yet, we know what abundance is and that it turns out into a joyful feast!
how can there be hunger in the world? the question lingers in our minds and we look at each other. are we just so used to rejecting what is good but imperfect?
after i went home with my bag laden with the day's harvest, the question still lingered. and i realize that sometimes, i have done the same thing in my life. i fear what i create and do is not adequate so i do not offer it. i think someone else does it better so i cast aside my strengths. maybe you, too?
but reality is, we feed hearts through who we are - just as we are. and the images of the faces of my students listening to me yesterday, with eyes wide open and hearts hungry for some real, passionate love story, fill my mind's eye.
yesterday, i dared to put my imperfections in The Force's hands and let him have his way with them, with me. and my story filled my students' hearts like it was the best love story they ever heard. yesterday was a season of harvest of my experiences. bwahahaha!
and as it turned out, it was an experience of abundance of joy far more than i imagined.
my bus will soon stop and bring me right to the gate of my villa. i put down my bag of harvest and assign the fruits to friends and family and strangers. what better way to celebrate a harvest than by sharing it?
life is good! best when shared! ilysm! i know you know it! ♥ ♥ ♥
