Reigning Men

 
By Beckie Carlson

For some reason, I’ve been noticing the passing of time more lately than usual. I feel myself growing older, I see my kids maturing before my eyes, and the past is stretching further and further behind me. I feel like I’m coming up on one of those hills you can see for miles and miles….but when you are at the top you can’t really tell how you got up there. How did I get here?

I’m a pretty capable person, always have been. My mom would tell you tales of me getting my wisdom teeth out or having jaw surgery and being a super hero. That’s her version. Mind over matter was my mantra and it worked. If I want something done, I usually just do it myself. Even when Brad was around, I would usually end up doing it. I would either get tired of waiting or just jump in feet first.

I decided to start my garden this week. It is spring break at my house, so it made sense. I have a wonderful garden area on the side of my house. The garden is actually one of the big selling points of this house. I wanted a bigger living room and  a garden spot. It has taken me almost two years from moving in, but I am finally attacking the garden. The area is a four foot raised bed, sprinkler fed, and almost completely full of dirt. It wasn’t quite full enough.
 
Step one, get more dirt, aka soil, to fill the garden. It kind of amazes me that we actually pay for dirt. Of course, we pay for water……Anyway. I was a good girl and measured the area before going to Home Depot to get soil. I needed approximately 80 cubic feet of soil. (I know this because I can do 5th grade math….) I got out my calculator and did a price check and even talked to a nice ‘gardener type guy’ before settling on the soil I needed.

26 bags of soil doesn’t seem like a whole lot until you lift the third bag. At that point, the, “what the h*** am I thinking” starts to set in and it becomes a real effort to not run at full (wimp) speed to the parking lot and drive straight to the craft store where things are WAY lighter. Having my son with me helped me be strong and stick to my guns. (He was inside on the lawn furniture playing games on his phone due to his allergies, but still…)

Quick thinking got me a rental truck and a forklift (and driver) to load up all those bags. Yay for me!
As I drove away triumphantly in my big hourly truck, I realized I still had to unload the truck. If I counted optimistically, I had me, a pregnant 25 year old, a two year old, 13 year old, 15 year old strapping young man, and a 20 year old…who may or may not be home. This was not looking good.
I admit that the thought went through my mind like this, “This is one of those days I wish I was married.” Yes, it’s true. I wish I had a man at home or even at the store doing this all for me. I was tired and I had just gotten started.

No sooner had I uttered these mental words, then the thought came into my mind clear as a bell. “Call the elders.” Of course! The missionaries are always looking for service projects. I don’t have home teachers that come so, I’m totally allowed to use them. I called them up and they came right over. Not only did our two elders come, but they brought two others they just happened to be giving a ride to. It took them all of five minutes to unload my truck. I gave them water and they were on their way.
I am so grateful for this tiny little miracle. Knowing me, I would have tried to get all those bags out the truck by myself and would most likely have thrown my back out. That would have ended my fun spring break and really messed up our plans.

The Lord has taken my main man, but he has not left me alone. I am so grateful for the men in my life that are there for me when I need heavy stuff moved, computers fixed, advice, hugs, priesthood blessings, protection, and even company on a given evening. I sometimes worry that I have taken too long, been single too long, left my kids without a father figure for too long, but I’m doing the best I can and I know my Father in Heaven is mindful of me.

Cause I said so.
Photo credit: http://www.ints-rep.com

Planting Some Seeds

by Becky Porter

My kids go back to school this week which is insane even by Arizona standards.  

I know some amazing moms who get all dewy-eyed as they send their children off to the first day of school.  In fact, I know some moms who would be a wreck if they were in my situation: ALL FIVE of my kids will be in school for the first time ever!!  My youngest (I'm not allowed to call him "my baby") will be starting kindergarten!

Now, before you pull out a hankie and cue up the tears, I have to inject a dose of reality.  Sorry.  I adore my children.  Really.  I happen to know that they are some of the most amazing kids to grace the face of this earth.  But, I am not crying.  Oh no.  Friends, I am dancing!  I am absolutely giddy!  Think of all the wonderful things I can do for the three hours of morning kindergarten!  If you can't come up with any ideas, I can help you out there.

I have always loved the first day of the school year, even when I was a kid.  There's a line from that Meg Ryan movie, "You've Got Mail", floating through my head--something about a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils.  I adore office supplies.  I have a strange compulsion to buy colored binder clips, patterned file folders, and dozens of composition notebooks every summer.  I long to grab everything in those tantalizing stationery aisles and toss them into my overflowing red cart (ahem; don't judge my Target addiction).

But the main reason I love a new school year is because it signifies a fresh start, a clean slate.  It is the symbolism of a fresh pack of crayons and a blank book that speaks to me.  And so, I set goals in August or September.  I make lists and more lists (I have to do something with my cute new notepads and pens!) and make grandiose plans.  Too often, I lose my lists and my enthusiasm about the same time which is, oh, approximately two weeks after I start working on my goals.

As I was flipping through my August issue of the Ensign magazine, I read an awesome article by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf that made me ponder what I can do differently this year.  He states, 

"Just as earthly seeds require effort and patience, so do many of the blessings of heaven.  We cannot put our religion on a shelf and expect to harvest spiritual blessings. . . . God's answers to our prayers do not always come immediately--sometimes they do not appear to come at all--but God knows what is best for His children. . . .our goal and great joy is to walk in the footsteps of our Master and Savior and to live good and refined lives so that the promised and precious harvest of God's priceless blessings can be ours."

Patience.  There's something I've spent a long time not having.  But I'm working on it.  And this time as I set my goals, I'll be doing more of it on my knees seeking the guidance of my Savior so that I can become the person He needs me to be.  He created me for a purpose.  He is the Master Gardener.  It is my job to put down roots and bloom.

*What seeds are you planting?  Any goals you can share with us?* 

W is for Weeds, Words & Work

W is for Weeds

It's springtime, and that means (if you live anywhere blessed by winter weather) time for the green, and the birds, and the tulips to return.  The earth is shedding its solemn white and brown winter coat and donning a wardrobe of color.

If you have a yard, spring also means time to head outside and prepare the garden for another planting season.

There is nothing like a garden - whether it grows flowers or vegetables.  And yet every garden, regardless of size or location, is prone to the same unchanging problem: weeds.

They are hardy, prickly, aggressive and unrelenting.  If you're not careful, they'll replace your growing plants with something much less desirable.  They wipe out everything in their path, and then continue on their conquest to the neighbors' yards.

And we've all had those neighbors - the one's with weeds waist high that seed and blow around on the wind - the one's who just don't seem to care.



So how does one get rid of weeds?  There are a few different options:

1. Go to the store and buy weed killer (the trouble with this is it kills the good plants too)
2. Hire a professional to do it for you  (the trouble with this is it costs money)
3. Ignore them (the trouble with this is it frustrates the neighbors)
4. Roll up your sleeves, put on some gloves, and get to pull them yourself (the trouble with this is it's work)

Ultimately, the how of de-weeding is up to the individual gardener, but the old advice of putting some effort into a task can produce real results - especially if you can get the weed out by the root.  It may take work, it may take effort, but the weed free garden that results is worth it.  And working in the dirt is very healthy, and can be satisfying.

W is for Words

It's revision time, and that means you've experienced the satisfaction of finishing the first draft or a WIP.  You've come down from the euphoria of accomplishing a difficult feat and are ready to dig in again.

There is nothing like seeing your words come to life - the characters, the plot, the scenes that you love spilling over the pages (or screen).  And yet every manuscript, regardless of length or author experience/expertise is prone to the same unchanging problem: errors.

They are frequent, difficult to spot, and sometimes embarrassing.  If you want to be considered seriously by an agent or editor, or you are self-published and want your work to be credible to your reading audience, you have to find and eradicate them.

And we've all read those books - the ones with errors on every page or huge factual discrepancies, that we want to throw across the room and yell "Agggh!"

So how does one get rid of errors?  There are a few different options:

1. Click on the spellchecker button in your writing software. (the trouble with this is it doesn't catch everything)
2. Rely on your critique partners to find errors for you (the trouble with this is they will still always miss some)
3. Ignore them (the trouble with this is it frustrates your readers - and kills your credibility)
4. Roll up your sleeves, research good editing skills and practices, and get to work.  This involves invoking options #1 and #2 (option #3 is still a really bad idea!)

With weeds and words, putting the time and effort into a garden or a manuscript is work.  But with weeds and words, work put forth can actually become something beautiful - opportunity and success.

So fellow writers - go pull out your gardening tools, and get to work!



Thought I'd leave you with this little thought:  How do you tell the difference between a vegetable and a weed?  Give it a pull - if it comes out easy, it's a vegetable!

G is for Gardening with Caleb Warnock

As a mom, I struggle to find a balance with my time, skill , and money. None of which seem to be abundant. I want to provide healthy nutritious meals for my girls. But with my husband currently unemployed, my budget tends to lend itself more to Dino nuggets than fresh fruits and veggies. If only I knew the secrets of my Mormon ancestors. Well, what do you know, there’s a book for that.

Caleb Warnock does nothing by half measures. He’s a teacher, an author, and a gardening master. He combines all of these together in his national bestselling book, The Forgotten Skills of Self-Sufficiency Used by the Mormon Pioneers.
        
This Saturday So What is brought to you by the letter G and the number 2. That’s because it’s a 2 part interview with Gardening Guru, Caleb Warnock. After reading G is for Garderning, hop on over to my blog to read Part 2, G is for Writing Guru.

This week I sat down with Caleb and this is the gist of what he had to say.

Betsy: So first off, where the heck did the gardening come from? Natural green thumb since birth or something you discovered later in life?

Caleb: My great-grandparents had huge, gorgeous gardens. As a child I loved to visit and we would gather eggs and pick raspberries and eat all the vegetables we collected for dinner. And then there was their root cellar. That was really neat. Growing up, I just figured that everybody’s grandparents lived like that.

Betsy: What do you think are the 5 biggest gardening mistakes?

Caleb: 1. Choosing the wrong crops for the season length you have in your location.
          2. Spending money on stuff you don’t need like expensive fertilizers, a drip system or fancy grow boxes.
          3. Not knowing the difference between a family garden and a hobby garden. The point of a family garden is to be economical and efficient. A family garden might not look (or cost) like Martha Stewart’s, but when done right, it will put food on the table.
          4. Not planting the things your family will actually eat. Like planting more zucchini than you could ever possibly use. It doesn’t matter if it’s easy to grow if no one in your family will ever eat it. Beginning gardeners especially tend to get discouraged if they grow things their family doesn’t want to eat.
          5. Going too big, too soon. You might think you can “make” the kids water and weed, but by the end of the summer you’ll be doing most of it yourself. Be prepared for that.

Betsy: What does living self-sufficiently mean? For me, that means doing my own grocery shopping. Why should I care?

Caleb: Not everyone does care, and that’s okay. But with the economy collapsing in 2008, a lot of people are really struggling to stretch their money. Sometimes there aren’t a lot of ways you can “give yourself a raise.” The mortgage, the car payment, insurance -- all pretty fixed. But if you can grow some of your own food, you can cut your grocery budget. Most families with kids spend between $400 and $1,000 a month at the grocery store and eating out. If you can cut that by a quarter, or half, that’s real money. If you do decide to live self sufficiently, you can have better tasting  and healthier food at a fraction of the cost. You can literally save hundreds of dollars a month from the grocery store and eating out. If you are willing to put in the work, you will have money saved and give yourself a raise in other areas.

Betsy: So can anybody do this? Or do you need to live on a farm?

Caleb: If you want to do it, you can, no matter where you live. I’ve gardened everywhere I’ve lived. I’ve grown lettuce in pots in the windows of BYU student housing. I grew a garden as a newly married in married housing, in a condo, and now we have an acre and a half. I’ve used community gardens, or sectioned a little piece of bare ground behind an apartment complex. You can do it. Start in the summer and have at least part of one meal a day, or a week, be from your garden. You can start simple and move up. Now, we try to eat at least part of one meal a day that comes from our property. And on some days, we eat three meals a day from our property -- garden veggie omelets, soup, roasted vegetables.

Betsy: After reading your book, my mom calls you, “The Chicken Whisperer”. I understand you’ve had a number of chicken consults recently.

Caleb: Someone called me last week, sure that their chicken had gone blind overnight. It hadn’t. It was just focused on brooding on the eggs in the nest. But it’s not just chickens. I get emails on everything. Yesterday I got an email with pictures of someone’s grapevine. They were sure there was something wrong with it. There has been so much knowledge lost from our pioneer ancestors. I can’t get to everyone’s questions, although I am much more likely to answer emails if they mention they’ve bought my book. They guilt me into it.

Betsy:  So is this book just a how-to gardening book?

Caleb: Definitely not. It’s how families can eat self-sufficiently 365 days of the year. And forgotten knowledge. For example, 93 percent of seeds found in garden catalogs in the U.S.  in 1903 are now extinct.

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So tighten your belt and buck up your courage and give gardening a try. I’m going to start small with strawberry pots and squash. No chickens just yet. Caleb Warnock’s book, The Forgotten Skills of Self-Sufficiency Used by the Mormon Pioneers, is available here at Amazon.com,  as well as Utah Costco stores, Deseret Book, and Seagull. His next book, The Art of Baking with Natural Yeast: Breads, Pancakes, Waffles, Cinnamon Rolls and Muffins, is now available for pre-order on Amazon.com.

And as I’ve already said, Caleb is not just a gardener. He is also an amazing Writing Guru, and pretty much the main reason I’ve got three book contracts. Yep, Caleb taught me most everything I know. Pick up a few tips and hop on over to Part 2 of this interview- G is for Writing Guru


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