A Year of Gratitude – August 28, 2024

My gratitude was waiting for me in the garden this afternoon. I found it in the tomato patch. These vines just keep on producing delicious tomatoes for us to enjoy.

It has been almost two months since I discovered the first ripe tomato in this year’s garden. They came early this year, before the Fourth of July. That’s the earliest we have ever enjoyed the first tomato from this patch.

Since then, we have been harvesting fresh tomatoes every day. The harvest has been so consistent this year and we have had plenty to enjoy in fresh caprese salads, BLTs and in our favorite cooked tomato recipes. I’ve also had more than enough to fill the freezer so that we can enjoy them during the long winter.

I know how much comfort they can bring on a wintry, snowy day. That fresh flavor will be so welcome on a cold day. Each bite will be a reminder that we’re one day closer to gardening season which is such a gift during those short winter days.

I’m grateful for each one of these tomatoes. I’ll keep picking until the vines run out of the energy to ripen any more. And then, I’ll start looking forward to next year’s garden.

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.