To Everything, Turn, Turn, Turn

Datura flower in front garden

For everything there is a season,

and a time to every purpose under heaven.

A time to be born, and a time to die;

A time to plant, and a time to uproot what is planted.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-2

After several Indian Summer days, a cold wind blew through our region last night, and this morning we woke up to beautiful fall temperatures with a forecast of more to come.  Fall brings many changes to the garden, and I have been preparing for it for several weeks.  I thoroughly pruned two crabapples and an ornamental orange.  I’ve pulled out the petunias that were beyond leggy, and replaced them with winter-over pansies and ornamental kale. 

At the beginning of the summer, I had a whole raft of datura plants rise up from seed in a very large planter where one datura had reigned the year before.  Having no particular place to plant such a treasure trove, but refusing to miss out on the beautiful white blooms, I threw the little plants into the new flower bed I am developing along my front walkway.  Daturas are totally the wrong plant to put in such a location, but I knew that they would only be temporary boarders.  They grew to a height of 28” and a width of over two feet, and graced the landscape with all the white trumpet flowers I could possibly want. 

On Monday, however, I realized that it was time – time to say goodbye to my plant friends and pull them up - time to finally get the edging blocks in and fill the bed with mulch.   So in the dark of night (literally!), I grabbed a recyclable bag and slipped outside to cut down/uproot nine beautiful plants.  If they had had voices, I know they would have protested.  There was one beautiful trumpet flower still in bloom, and I paused a moment to admire its beauty.  Then into the sack and into the garbage it went, leaving my front yard looking strangely different.  Not awful – just different.

Life gives us birthing and dying, planting and uprooting.  Very little in this world always stays the same.  Change is all around us.  How we react to that change will color our days on this earth.  Placing all things into God’s hand, knowing that He has control of the reins, makes for a much more peaceful journey.