A Year of Gratitude – June 2, 2024

I found gratitude today in the promise of beautiful flowers to come. We have many hydrangea in our gardens, but the largest is near the West side of the old barn. It gets the shade it likes from the barn and grows more enormous each year.

Last year, this hydrangea only produced a single flower. Yes, it was as lovely as they usually are, but one flower on a large plant that was vibrant and healthy was a disappointment.

This year, it is covered with buds, the promise of the gorgeous flowers it will hopefully produce for us this summer. It flowers with deep blue blooms the size of dinner plates, a glorious sight to behold. I find myself so excited to see these little buds, to think of the glorious flowers we will be treated to this summer.

While the garden has many lessons to teach me or remind me of, acceptance just might be the greatest one. For a gardener must be patient and take what nature gives them. A gardener can’t control the weather, can only do so much to match the conditions. Some years are too dry while others are too wet. Sure, the gardener can try to balance out what nature produces, but there is only so much that we can control.

So, a gardener hopes for the best from nature and accepts the worst when it happens. We tell ourselves, “There’s always next year.” and try to believe it, hold on to the hope that the next growing season will be better.

Sometimes they are. I have my fingers crossed that this one will be for this grand old hydrangea. When it is, you can rest assured that I’ll have photos of the blue flowers to share with you.

This post is part of our A Year of Gratitude Series. You can find the introduction, inspiration, and entire year’s gratitude’s posts here.