My surgery will be one week from today,  March 18, 2019. I'm ready spiritually, mentally and emotionally. I'm as ready physically as I can be... 🙄 I would love to be stronger and healthier,  but... well, that's pretty much why I'm having the surgery!!!

The things that are not ready, is the house and my little flower gardens. There are so many things that I think should be done in and around our house that I just can't do, and THAT bothers me. I've put many of these things off for years,  but, they're still the things that my mind tries to dwell on.... Of course, none of that really matters. (But if I were able,  I would never leave it like this. 😉)

I would also love to be able to work on my yard and my little flower gardens too. They bring so much joy to my life. Especially since I've been stuck at home for so many years,  I look forward to their beauty every day. 

"Just drop me off in the gardening section." If I've said that once, I've says it thousands of times during my lifetime. While my husband has to do most of the shopping, I still try to pick out some items when I'm at a store with him. However, I always need to see the beautiful growing things first. If that means that I look at the growing things for a few minutes,  then sit in the car and rest while he shops, I'm fine with that. 

I have always loved nature. I feel better when I'm outdoors. When I was younger, and healthier, I would stroll by the lake, hike by the creek or avidly work in my flower garden. I haven't been able to go to the lake or creek in many years, but until two years ago, I still gardened as often as my body allowed. Now, I'm only able to look, but I still love nature. Simply being near plants makes me feel better, and when I'm surrounded by growing things, I feel closer to God. 

What is it about plants that soothe the soul? Some scientists have noticed these restorative benefits of nature and believe that gardens, plants, even a poster of plants or a scene from nature can lower blood pressure, boost immune function and reduce stress, fear, and anger. Many scientific studies have repeatedly proven this benefit. Other studies have shown that residential facilities with gardens, or even just a few potted plants for each resident to care for, has dramatically reduced anxiety, agitation, aggression, fear and social withdrawal, also decreasing the amounts of medication needed.

I try to go outside and just sit for a few minutes every day. Even though I can no longer garden, I still think about all my years of planting and growing things. I think about the miracle of growing things. When I planted seeds, I checked them every day, just waiting for those first little green sprouts. It seemed like little miracles. All that potential, bundled up inside a tiny little packet from nature. All the instructions necessary for growing, blooming, reproduction, patiently waiting for the right conditions to sprout. When those first sprouts appeared, I thanked God for the new life. 

In the Bible, several Gardens are predominant. The first was the beautiful paradise in Eden for Adam, the man that God had created. He then created a helper for Adam, a woman, while they were in that incredible garden. I love that EVE was created while they were IN that awesome GARDEN.

I try to imagine the beauty and tranquility she saw in that place; that indescribably wondrous place where there was no weeds, brambles or thorns, no disease, death or decay. It was a place where every tree was pleasant to see and good for food, and God physically walked beside man. I know our gardens aren't nearly as beautiful as this first garden, but often,  I feel so close to God in these natural areas that He created that I can almost feel Him walking next to me.  


I know that I will have major surgery soon, and I still must spend most of my time indoors, because I am so incredibly fatigued. I've watched from the window as several of our early flowers, like camillias, daffodils, and the lovely pink, saucer magnolias bloomed, and I see so many more plants which are just starting to bloom. Looking through the trees, I see so many of them sporting their first, eager spring growth, reaching for the light in tiny bursts of color. And I pray for the strength and energy to simply stroll outdoors, sit under this canopy of God's creation, smell the amazing, fresh air and thank my creator for this majestic beauty he designed for me.