Gardens encourage us to celebrate the growth

As a kid, I remember growing my own crystals from a kit from a garage sale. I remember the feeling of watching the colorful spikes gain height, maddeningly slowly each day. On a daily basis I was frustrated, but after several days I was amazed at their progress and beauty.

I’ve watched my kids experience the same feeling when they’ve planted a seed in a paper cup. Nothing for days, but when the first sprout pushes through the soil it’s a little miracle. Then the first true leaves appear and before you know it, that plant is all grown up with a flower.

Growing something can be hard but also extremely satisfying. As an adult, I experience this each summer with my garden. I battle weeds and mosquitoes, wait for seeds to sprout and transplants to take root.

Looking at the plot in late May it seems as if I will never eat a salad. But sure enough, September rolls around and I’m begging people to take my zucchini.

I saw a pregnant friend once a week for the last several months of her pregnancy. Her middle grew from barely a bump to a T-shirt-stretching belly that looked as if it couldn’t expand another inch (until it did).

Her little girl has since arrived and she’s beginning the ultimate growth journey.

I’m still in the middle of this growth journey myself, and it moves in waves. At times I can’t believe my children were once babes, and at other times I’m in a state of utter disbelief that they are physically unable to get their socks into the hamper.

When you’re caring for babies, it feels as if you will never be free of changing diapers or waking up at all hours of the night. But then you are.

I remember being annoyed that my 6-year-old still called me in to help him wash his hair. As a I knelt down to rub his little blond head and pour over cups of rinse water, I made the decision to hit pause and enjoy it. One of these times was going to be the last time I ever did this for him, and the sad thing was, I wouldn’t even know it when it was happening.

And sure enough, by the end of the season he had switched to showers.

Celebrate the growth when you can, when you have the patience and perspective. And the rest of the time? When the days are long and you cannot wait until they are in bed? Have a glass of wine and remember your crystal garden, your elementary school zinnia, your bountiful tomato harvest; and know that the journey is difficult and excruciatingly slow, but worth it.

Someday, gaze upon what you grew with amazement.

I made this Southwestern riff on a bread salad for the friend who just had her baby. It takes advantage of my growing garden (and my local farmers market) and yields a salad bursting with fresh veggies and filling bread all tossed with a cilantro pesto.

For a new mom, it’s a salad you can eat right from the fridge or at room temperature. Whether she has time to sit down with a proper plate (unlikely) or can just snatch a few bites right from the bowl, the vegetables, bread, avocado and olive oil provide a few fast, satisfying calories to power her through baby’s next feeding.

Anna Thomas Bates is a mother and writer living in southern Wisconsin. Email her at tallgrasskitchen@gmail.com.