Struggling

Wind, more wind, ceaseless never ending wind. We woke to the sound of moaning wind, a shrieking wind generator, grit peppering the sides of the house and creaking noises. As I turned on the coffee maker I heard a sound from the outer door on the sun room. The wind had pulled the latch loose, ripped the safety chain anchor form the door and bent the shaft on the cylinder. This morning equaled or exceeded the worst wind storms that I remember.

In my part of the world April, May and June are the windiest and driest months with the most sunshine and the lowest relative humidity. Gardening is a challenge that I'm losing at the moment. Last weekend I missed an opportunity on Friday to plant a few items. Saturday and Sunday were too windy. Today I left young seedlings inside rather than putting them outside. Seeds, young plants and tubers are waiting.

When I first went in the army I made $76 per month and cleared $72 after taxes. Money was tight. After a year I made ninety-some per month. On one of the occasions that I was the armed guard for the pay officer I was left waiting with enough cash to pay about 200 men. As I looked at the bag containing thousands of dollars I thought of what it could buy. My father paid $9,000 for his house. I could buy three houses and have money left over to buy a new car! And still have cash!

I looked at the money and had an interesting feeling. Money that I didn't earn with some hard work would be valueless. It may buy a house but there would be no sense of accomplishment, no memories of overcoming challenges, no satisfaction of enjoying something that came with anticipation and struggle.

I feel the same way about gardening. It may be a struggle at the moment but there is a salad in my future that will be delicious in part because of the struggle.

Tomorrow morning the wind should lessen. If so, tomorrow evening I'll get back to the garden.