MY KIND OF GARDENING

My husband Steven went into the living room. “I heard the doorbell.” He called as he looked out the front window to see if anyone was still on the steps. “Who was at the front door?” He came into the kitchen where I was placing several cucumbers on our butcher block.

I pointed to them. “The kids from across the street brought them over!” I couldn’t help but smile. “When we went over in the spring to look at the garden they were putting in I had a feeling we were going to see some of the bounty coming our way.”

Steven sighed. “I really wanted to start our own garden this year.” He shook his head. “But I couldn’t seem to find the time.”

“Hey!” I pointed to the cucumbers again. “This is my kind of gardening! Someone rings my doorbell, hands me fresh produce and I didn’t have to do any of the work!” I shrugged my shoulders and held my hands up. “It’s a total win for me!”

“It was really nice of them to send them over.” Steven nodded in agreement. “But I’d love to be able to go out in my own garden and pick a fresh tomato for dinner. Maybe bring in a green pepper for our salad.” Steven looked over at me. “Wouldn’t that be nice?”

“Maybe for you but I already tried a garden and it was a complete and total disaster!”

Steven looked confused. “You mean the two cherry tomato plants you had on the porch a few years back?”

“Oh, yeah.” I nodded at the memory. “The ground hog snapped the vines and I Scotch taped them back together.” I shook my head and held my pointer finger up. “But, I was talking about the time I got a small patch in the community garden years ago.” I looked over at him and raised my eyebrows to see if he remembered.

“Oh, I do remember that.” Steven cringed. “After your first day there I swear you came home with heat stroke. I thought I was going to have to take you to the emergency room.”

I nodded in agreement. “I hated having to go over there every day to water and weed my sad little tomato plants.” I had to laugh. “The guy next to my garden, I’m absolutely positive he was a master gardener! He had ten different vegetables, a half a dozen herbs, and even some flowers!”

“I remember that garden.” Steven said as he leaned against the counter top. “I went over to water your garden one day.” He began nodding his head with the memory. “His was a nice one.”

“Yeah, and it made mine look all the more pathetic.” I shook my head again. “So that’s why I’m leaving my gardening up to the neighbors.” I smiled as I looked over at Steven. “You know, they put in way too many tomato plants, too.”

“How do you know that?” Steven looked confused.

“Because I can see their garden from the street.” I shrugged my shoulders. “I’ve been checking on it when Alex and I go for our walks.”

“Seriously?”

“Of course!” I reached past him to get a glass out of the cabinet. “You’ll be happy to know that we should be seeing some tomatoes in the very near future.” I filled the glass from the sink. “I can’t really see what else is coming in. It’s too far away.” I took a sip from the glass before putting it on the counter. “I guess we’ll just have to be surprised when the kids drop them off.”

Steven shook his head and laughed. “Gardening from a distance.”

“Exactly.”