Joy in The Garden

I just love the bright yellow sunflowers we plant each year. They just cheer you to look at them. We have planted sunflowers for many years, its our way of having good organic bird seed for the cold months for all the birds that visit our feeders. Of course the added benefit, is having the beautiful colors of the flowers along our garden fence line.
After the heads have dried, I pick the seeds off of most the plants but some I leave just to be able to watch the birds pick them clean without any help from me.
When picking the seeds off, I love to sit at the table in the yard, under the cottonwood tree, wind gently blowing the leaves above me, the sun warm but with a hint of cooler weather ahead. It's one of those jobs that makes you feel the need to hum some favorite hymn or old folk song while you are working as if there was no possible way to keep that song in your heart from bubbling over. Perhaps a true sign of being content. I store the seeds in one of our feed bins, which is just an old 55 gallon drum with a tight lid on it.
Running your hand through the seeds after they have been stored, makes a funny sound, maybe a bit like the sound of cascading shells, the tiny ones you find along the waters edge. I can hear it so plainly in my mind as I write these words, but not easy to describe.
Much of life is that way, you can almost feel, see and hear a memory but putting it into words always falls a bit short in capturing what you want to describe.
Our eggplant is growing so well in this dry heat. They like this weather. So many yummy meals will come from these simple plants.
It would be difficult for me to live where we had no garden, or land to roam. Each day brings so many gifts from the Creators hand. His fingerprints all around me, reminding me of His tender love.

our garden
the sunflowers
eggplant