Decked Out in the Garden

About two years ago, my husband Mike, our son, Jeremy and some friends helped build a beautiful redwood deck in our backyard.  Jeremy did the designing, and Mike did most of the grunt work.  This summer, we have finally been able to enjoy the fruits of all their labors.  After looking through dozens of catalogs, we settled on some deck furniture.  It wasn’t exactly what we wanted, but we could not find any furniture with a Tuscan grape theme.  So we settled for palm trees instead. 

Last year we had sod laid in the back yard and planted three baby Aptos Blue coastal redwoods.  I named them Surely, Goodness and Mercy.  This year, they have grown about two or three feet and have filled out beautifully and add a nice touch and a mountain feel to our backyard.  When spring came, Mike and I went on a planting frenzy.  I went to Target and fell in love with their Martha Washington Geraniums.  We ended up buying about a dozen of them and planted them around the outside of our deck.  Mike also picked up three Lilac trees, which he named, Lila, Leila and Lola.  He and Jeremy also planted dozens of other flowers in the yard, such as Foxglove, Marigolds, Snap Dragons, Hydrangeas, Bougainvillas, Star Jasmine and several others.  Our most recent addition has been five baby Italian Cypresses on the side of our yard.  Since we like to name things, I decided to name them after my Great Grandma Cappetta’s five sons.  They are, Angelo, Edwardo, Gildo, Romeo and Pasquale.  I call them “The Cappetta Grove”.  After all, they are Italian cypresses!

Many nights this summer, we have all enjoyed sitting out on the deck and have derived much pleasure in the beauty of God’s creation in our little “Garden of Eden” that we have had a hand in designing.  It kind of gives me a small idea of how God must’ve felt when He created all the plant life, animals, birds, fish and his crown creation; man.  Ecclesiastes 3:13 talks about enjoying the good of our labor…it is the gift of God.  So we have been enjoying all our labor and toil.  We’re thankful to God for this special time to bask in His creation and be refreshed in our little “Garden of Eden”.  As I sit there, the tense muscles in my shoulders and back begin to relax, and I feel the cares of the day slowly fade into the background, and a calmness pervades my being.  Sometimes I’ve even fallen asleep out there.  I’m thankful for our little “Shangri-La”, but I look forward someday to basking in the eternal glow and presence of Jesus.  The beauty and splendor of our little garden will pale in comparison.