My Kitchen Garden

March Cafe Writing: Option Three - Timed Writing

I used to visit and revisit it a dozen times a day, and stand in deep contemplation over my vegetable progeny with a love that nobody could share or conceive of who had never taken part in the process of creation. It was one of the most bewitching sights in the world to observe a hill of beans thrusting aside the soil, or a rose of early peas just peeping forth sufficiently to trace a line of delicate green.
~Nathaniel Hawthorne, from Mosses from an Old Manse

Take fifteen minutes (use all fifteen, but don’t go over), and write on the subject of a picture of your heart. This is a timed exercise and it’s expected that it won’t be perfect. Any format - fiction, essay, verse - is welcome.

(My kitchen garden in 2005)

MY KITCHEN GARDEN

The ground is broken, the soil is worked
And now it's time to plant
Potatoes and onions always go first
With cabbage, peas and lettuce not far behind
After Derby Day, it is safe to tuck in tomatoes and cukes
But I must wait for the hot days of June to introduce the peppers
By the 4th of July, the corn should be knee-high and the mouth-watering anticipation of a large, juicy ear is almost too much to bear
By August the garden is brimming over with lush green vegetation and color is speckled everywhere, catching my eye in amazement
Red ripe tomatoes, cool green cukes, purple elongated eggplants and bell peppers in green, red and yellow
The zucchini has overtaken one corner and still demands to produce, but the family is tired of this eager squash and neighbors run when it's coming
And the sunflower sentries stand guard at each fence post and between
Warming their faces to the bright glowing sun, bringing smiles to everyone's faces
My garden is home, the place I want to be
It touches my heart and touches my soul
And fills me with joyous satisfaction.