JOHNNY DANDELION SEED
When we moved to Toronto two years ago, our new home had "gardening issues". It seems that the previous tenants didn't like to use a lawnmower so the grass was Amazon Basin level. In fact, if our yard had been any bigger, I would have looked for a lost tribe of some sort! The only parts of our backyard that were manicured, in the loosest sense of that word, were the two sunken ruts left from years of parking a vehicle back there.
In some ways, the length of the greenage was a plus because there was an old washing machine and dryer as well as a dishwasher in the backyard. To the tenant's credit they did eventually have these items removed and that helped quite a bit, but paradise still was far from being reclaimed.
This was what we inherited with our house. This was our challenge. A challenge, I might add, that I had no intention of living up to, but Sheila, Sheila did not fear. She boldly went where no man (namely me) had gone before and she entered the backyard with blades and bulbs, shovels and shrubs flailing.
I personally think she has done a tremendous job. It is a work in progress, but the improvement is substantial. One sore spot though, is that we have yet to do much with the grass other than cut it. At present, our grass only looks like grass if it is freshly cut and you squint while looking through a dirty window. You see, we have a weed problem. In particular, the dandelions are positioning themselves for a hostile takeover and the jury is out on whether they will actually succeed or not.
If I had any sense I would hang my head in horticultural humiliation, but no one has ever accused me of having sense. No, I have no shame. I take a different slant on this whole issue of dandelion distaste. I say, "Up with the dignified dandelion". Dance, dandelion, dance! Dance your way into our hearts!
After all, who was it who made the decision to call the dandelion a weed in the first place? How can you call something a weed that has "dandy" and "lion" as part of its name? With a name like that, there must be some blue chlorophyll pulsing through its stem. Noble dandelion, regal dandelion, how we have maligned you!
Let me see if I can sway you
to my side of the issue:
First off, I realize that I am no horticultural hunk, but to my untrained eyes, dandelions are every bit as colourful and eye-pleasing as marigolds. So, why are marigolds worthy of our respect when dandelions are the object of systematic gardening genocide? Think about it, what young child hasn't enjoyed the dandiness of the lion and pick a bouquet to present to his/her mother?
Another plus to the dandelion is that it becomes a toy in the hands of children. I know of someone, on Sheila's side of the family, who will remain unnamed to protect the innocent (me), who took great joy in sticking dandelions up their nose. Unfortunately, this game required a trip to the doctor. It seemed retrieval became problematic. I guess that means they had a "nose" for danger. Still, who hasn't picked up a dandelion and blown the fluffies into sweet release?
In my books dandelions are worthy of admiration - not annihilation! I very well may become the Johnny Dandelion Seed of the Northern Hemisphere.
OK so what do I want you to learn
from my yellow friends?
Well, first off, it seems to me that what we call a weed is simply a plant that we didn't plant. If we didn't plant it and if it's living where we want something else living, it must be a weed. I look at some people's lawns and know the issue is all about control. All you have to do is look at that edging and sculpting and know that. We want order. We want control. It is OUR yard after all!
For a while we lived in a house in Peterborough, Ontario. Our neighbour watched us all the time because when we first moved there, the lawn was overgrown and I cut it and some of the clippings were blown onto his side of the fence. This man was a lawn Nazi! His edging had edging. His lawn looked more like a pool table than a lawn. The worms had to have passports! He relentlessly worked and guarded and protected his territory, but you know what? He wasn't a very happy man. He wasn't enjoying his life or his lawn, it was really quite sad - and annoying! So what's my point? What area of your life is all about control? I learned a long time ago that there is a fine line between what we think we control and what is really controlling us. The best way to live a life is to give it over to God. Control takes its toll!
Secondly, some people guard their yards far more fanatically then they guard their hearts. Think about it. Weeds don't have to be planted, they just grow. Weeds don't need to be watered, they just grow. If you pull out a plant, chances are that it won't grow back, but if you pull out a weed? Weeds always come back! All I have to do is look at my yard to know that weeds have the upper hand in this world. They naturally take over
Well, it is the same with sin. Some sins are downright ugly, but some sins look kinda pretty. They can be rationalized into being flowers instead of weeds just like I did in this piece about the noble dandelion. But, the thing is that weeds are weeds, whether they are ugly or appealing and if you're not intentional about looking after the good fruit and flowers in your life, the weeds will take over. Sin is sin, whether or not you call it sin. It will take over your life if you aren't intentional about producing the good fruit that God wants to help you grow in the garden of your life. Sin is a weed in the truest sense of that word because it will grow in your life, unless you do something to stop it. Leave sin to its own and it will take over and kill whatever is good.
If you have any thoughts or comments, click on my name at the bottom of this page and I promise to write back.
