Day: Fourteen
Organization: Daniel Webster Middle School
Activity: Weeding & Planting
Weeds, I hate them, but tend to be good at growing them. Perhaps the only thing worse than having weeds in your lawn or garden is getting rid of them. I’m not talking about using all the new sprays that are on the market, but good old fashioned pulling and digging. Yet, that’s what I spent my day doing — yes, in case you are wondering, there are times I question my decisions!
But, I weeded for a good reason. There is an education garden at the middle school I worked at and it needed to be prepped for the kids to plant. Why they don’t have to weed it and prep it themselves I’m not sure, but they now have a great big weed-free area to plant their seedlings and watch them grow.
I am actually really happy that this school has this garden, which has existed for many years thanks to a very loyal volunteer. I think it’s important that kids understand where their food comes from and that it’s possible to grow your own food. It reminds me of the great work First Lady Michelle Obama is doing with the White House Garden. Greg and I have a vegetable and herb garden at our house and we love going out, seeing what’s ripe and cooking it up!
I was fortunate growing up in that my great grandfather was a farmer and while he no longer worked a farm when I was young, he still had an amazing garden at his humble New Jersey home. He used to take us out back to pick beans and blackberries, among other things. I learned early on to appreciate growing one’s own food.
So, while I don’t particularly like weeding, there really is nothing better than a day in the sunshine doing something that brings back great memories of childhood. And, since it’s now Spring, I have a feeling there will be many more weeds to fight.
Enjoy and happy weeding!