Modern Hill Woman

Gardening And

Canning With Faith

The Bible is full of references to gardens and gardening. From the garden of Eden to the parables of Jesus, gardens are used as a symbol of God’s love and care.

Gardening is a way of connecting with the creator and nature. It’s a way to slow down and appreciate the simple things in life and practice patience. Just planting a seed in the soil is an act of faith; faith that it will sprout, grow, produce fruit, and eventually nourish our bodies.

My granddaughter, Faith, is a first-time gardener this year. She is also a first-time mother. As a Mother’s Day gift, her man planted a vegetable garden for her. It was a definitely a labor of love.

For me to hear her amazement as each different type of plant blooms, puts on fruit, and is harvested, takes me back to the wonder of a little girl chasing butterflies and picking and eating blueberries straight from the bush in my backyard.

She calls me with gardening questions.

I channel my “inner Goldia” to try and answer them. How big does the produce need to get? Her first cucumbers were huge because she was waiting for them to turn dark green like store-bought, and (unlike store-bought) they had weird prickly bumps on them. She soon found out that if you let okra get six inches long, you can’t get a knife to cut through them, and once tomatoes start producing, your counters will be overflowing with them.

She has a newfound understanding of why produce is piled on every surface at my house during canning season.

My granddaughter has decided she wants to learn to can. We’ve now had a few supervised canning sessions. By her putting in the work, she can understand what a long process it is. Slicing, dicing, puréeing, simmering, and water bathing, to get the final product is a lesson in patience. Knowing where your food comes from is also a very satisfying feeling.

I’ll keep sharing my canning knowledge with Faith as long as she wants to and make this “Canning Girl Summer.”