My husband has developed a new hobby. I had been praying that he would find a way to unwind from his stressful job, and I really thought an occasional fishing trip would do the trick. Nope. That is not what God had in mind at all. He answered my prayer all right, but it took me quite some time to realize that it had come packaged in a way I least expected. It all started off innocently enough on the far side of our yard. One little 8ft x 8ft garden box full of rich black dirt and was easy enough to handle, or so I thought. What I didn’t realize was that the size and scope of the garden would grow in direct proportion to the pile of scrap landscape timbers on the opposite side of our home.
Each day, my husband would come home tired and worn out. He’d pat the dogs, kiss the kids, change his clothes, and disappear outside. Man, did that get me steamed! I’d been home all day (pregnant) with 3 young children and two dogs. Wasn’t I the one who needed some quiet time outside? Eventually, I got fed up and shoved the three children that could walk out the back door to be watched by their father, while he did whatever it was he was doing. He seemed ok with that, and I simply accepted the fact that children covered in dirt were better than children whining inside while I cooked dinner.
When I finally made it around the back side of the house, I was amazed that not one, but four garden boxes and an oddly shaped patch made out of leftover flowerbed edging were now planted with miscellaneous green surprises. I was turning green myself. Green with envy over the time my husband was spending in the dirt. That time could be much better put to work in the house helping with the mountain of chores that needed accomplished. The fact that the older children were joyfully as dirty as my husband did little to comfort my spirit of jealousy.
Not long after the garden began to produce its first harvest, I visited my husband at work. He had jokingly referred to his work area as the “dungeon”, but I thought he was kidding. God opened my eyes in a very real way that day. After 45 minutes in the dark, windowless room, illuminated only by the glow of computer screens filled with images and reports, I started to feel edgy. The nervousness that enveloped me was stifling. All I wanted to do was get outside and feel the sun. To imagine that my husband spends up to 14 hours a day down in that dark hole overwhelmed me. No wonder he ran outside as soon as he got home. God had used that brief encounter to truly humble my selfish spirit. My husband didn’t just want to go outside. He needed to go outside. The garden that was turning me into a jealous green monster was saving his sanity.
That evening, I halted the dinner preparations long enough to go outside and check out the garden while my husband went about his business. He, along with his three little assistants, proudly gave me the grand tour, and then plucked a bright yellow squash off of a plant. Then he pulled off another squash, and another, continuing until my arms were full of squash the color of summer sun. I raced inside and called my neighbor. I needed a good recipe, and quick! I wanted to serve those squash at dinner that night. The problem was that no one in my family had ever liked the squash I had cooked. My wonderful neighbor came through with a recipe for a squash casserole. The ingredients were all things I had on hand already.
As we sat down to share dinner that night, I proudly produced a steaming casserole dish, filled to the brim with bubbling squash, cheese, and toasted cracker crumbs. To everyone’s surprise, it was delicious.
In Isaiah 58:11, we are given a promise; “The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.” The Lord had given my husband a literal garden to feed his soul as well as our family.
That summer, I learned how to cook squash and tomatoes at least a dozen different ways. Of course, they were even tastier since they came from my husband’s garden, the tasty answer to my prayer.
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The recipe on my food blog ( www.queenofbrusselsprouts.blogspot.com ) is a "healthier" adaptation of the one I made that first harvest. I hope you enjoy it!
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