Reaping What I've Sown

When we first moved to the new house (still unnamed, I might add), I made the grand proclamation that I would attempt to start a kind of wildflower meadow where our property meets the road. I also made plans to plant daffodil bulbs across the gentle undulations of that space. My goal was rather simple--I wanted people to drive by our property and feel their spirits lifted by the flowers I'd planted. That's the reason Turfman and I spent so many hours on our knees last fall with baskets full of bulbs.

The result is not something especially grand this year, but I didn't expect much. That "meadow" is part of a five-year plan, so it will become a little more substantial with each passing year. The daffodils are visible from the road, but they might not draw attention.

Daffodils merely dot the landscape this year

Someone had noticed, though. Last Saturday, as Turfman was returning from a morning of golf, he saw that two female cyclists had pulled over in our driveway. Worried that they were having trouble with their bikes, he stopped and asked if they needed any help. Imagine how pleased I was when he recounted that they had actually pulled over to admire the daffodils! He must have been pretty happy, too, because he proceeded to tell him that "The Boss" (that's me, apparently) has plans for a wildflower meadow. They assured him that they would return to see the meadow's progress. I felt buoyed by that vote of confidence. It was more than enough to motivate me for the next phase.

Surprisingly, though, I received another vote today. As I neared our driveway on my way home from the college, I noticed something shiny on our mailbox. I pulled into the drive, walked across the road, and found a letter in a bag attached to the top of the mailbox post.

The envelope was in a Ziploc bag

The cyclists had returned sometime today, leaving me a card thanking me for my garden. They even included a thoughtful gift, writing that "maybe you could use our seeds, too" when I sow the meadow seeds. I meant to brighten someone's day with the garden, and apparently I did. I just never expected that the goodwill would return to me in the form of such a lovely surprise. Hopefully their seeds will take hold and have a similar effect on others who pass.

Seeds of goodwill