The worm and the fork
The day of the Lord is near (Joel 1:15)
Being at home without permission to go out, has given me time to dig over the vegetable patch. As I dug I noticed that the worm count is dramatically reduced in some parts and quite high in others. On reflection it seems to be that where I am digging over areas that have been uncultivated for some years and are clogged with weeds, the worms are thriving. Where I am re-tilling last year's well used soil the worms are few and far between.
One reason could be the quality of the soil, but as we are fortunate to be living on very rich land that doesn't seem the answer. No, what I've noticed is that worms, like any of us, like to have a home. In the undisturbed areas they have built what I can only think of as nests. In the well-tilled areas they are roaming without protection, like travellers across an open moor.
So I've made a decision. Somewhere on the veg patch I'm going to institute worm hotels. Areas that will remain untilled year after year, with only a top dressing of compost to keep them fertile. I've considered a row of gooseberry bushes, or maybe I might try my hand at asparagus. Not a patch of weeds of course - they've got to go.
Excuse me if this is too simplistic an image, but I wondered if the worm might teach me a lesson. While from his point of view, my work with a fork is breaking up his home and family, from mine it is preparing the ground to produce an abundant harvest. I dig over to root out the weeds and make the patch more fertile. For him it becomes a barren wasteland. I cannot grow successfully until it has been done. He cannot rest until I have finished.
As I read Joel I am beginning to wonder if his vision is too narrow. For him, it is a dreadful day when the day of the Lord is near. For me, I hear a different tune. I hear Christ's voice saying, 'The Kingdom of God is at hand'. It's nearness is a matter of hope not despair.
So I ask myself as I ponder the worm and the vegetable patch, is the day of destruction a truly dreadful day, or is it preparation for an abundant harvest? Have I got the right perspective on God's actions in the world, or am I thinking like a worm, whose home has been broken up, who has been exposed to the predations of robin and blackbird? I am not sure I have the courage to see a bigger picture, because it hurts, but I suspect it is a vision I really need.
Being at home without permission to go out, has given me time to dig over the vegetable patch. As I dug I noticed that the worm count is dramatically reduced in some parts and quite high in others. On reflection it seems to be that where I am digging over areas that have been uncultivated for some years and are clogged with weeds, the worms are thriving. Where I am re-tilling last year's well used soil the worms are few and far between.
One reason could be the quality of the soil, but as we are fortunate to be living on very rich land that doesn't seem the answer. No, what I've noticed is that worms, like any of us, like to have a home. In the undisturbed areas they have built what I can only think of as nests. In the well-tilled areas they are roaming without protection, like travellers across an open moor.
So I've made a decision. Somewhere on the veg patch I'm going to institute worm hotels. Areas that will remain untilled year after year, with only a top dressing of compost to keep them fertile. I've considered a row of gooseberry bushes, or maybe I might try my hand at asparagus. Not a patch of weeds of course - they've got to go.
Excuse me if this is too simplistic an image, but I wondered if the worm might teach me a lesson. While from his point of view, my work with a fork is breaking up his home and family, from mine it is preparing the ground to produce an abundant harvest. I dig over to root out the weeds and make the patch more fertile. For him it becomes a barren wasteland. I cannot grow successfully until it has been done. He cannot rest until I have finished.
As I read Joel I am beginning to wonder if his vision is too narrow. For him, it is a dreadful day when the day of the Lord is near. For me, I hear a different tune. I hear Christ's voice saying, 'The Kingdom of God is at hand'. It's nearness is a matter of hope not despair.
So I ask myself as I ponder the worm and the vegetable patch, is the day of destruction a truly dreadful day, or is it preparation for an abundant harvest? Have I got the right perspective on God's actions in the world, or am I thinking like a worm, whose home has been broken up, who has been exposed to the predations of robin and blackbird? I am not sure I have the courage to see a bigger picture, because it hurts, but I suspect it is a vision I really need.
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| A french vegetable patch, near L'Angleterre |
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