I planted a garden about five days before Camilla the chicken died. It was a very cool design – a "pizza" garden – one where each "slice" had a flower and a vegetable planted. I was interested to see how it was going to turn out. You have to have an imagination when you plant things, because you don't see any results of your labor for weeks, and even then, you have to wait months before you see the fruit of your labor, so to speak.
What I did not know is that, though I covered the garden with wire fencing, somehow, Camilla got in there and stirred everything up (and ate whatever struck her fancy, like all the corn). So, now, instead of nice, neat, ordered slices of flower and veg, I have randomness and chaos. There are sunflowers everywhere, even outside of the raised garden itself and smatterings of things cropping up here and there. It is a disaster on one hand. On the other, it is a fond reminder of my funny chicken, whom I miss.
All seeds require patience. Especially the ones of the friendship variety. Some of these sprout quickly, but are like annuals with no staying power. Others are like perennials – year after year they bloom and charm with their beauty. Still others are trees. They take years to grow and become established. They create cool shade, shelter from the elements of life. And then one year, out of no where, there is a piece of fruit. The next year there are five. And the next year 40. And then the bounty from that friendship is immesurable and irreplaceable.
When you invest with someone, it is an adventure; you never know what you will find around the corner of the next year. Yes, they are messy and costly in terms of time and energy. But those that flower create so much beauty. And those that are the trees – they become strong and steady; the winds of weather and change do not distress them. Their fruit is sweet and it blesses all - not just the original two, but all who come in contact with both of them.