Winter Sowing

Do you know how therapeutic it is to get your hands in the dirt? Especially in February and March here in Michigan? Come on, people. Tell me I'm not alone. Spring needs to come ASAP to rescue me from my "benauwd" self. My Dutch Great Grandmother pronounced it "ben-OUT."

benauwd

adjective

airless [adjective] (of a room etc) stuffy and without fresh air

close  [adjective] without fresh air

cramped  [adjective] feeling uncomfortable because there is not enough space

pokey  [adjective] (of a room etc) small, with not enough space

(Translation of benauwd from the PASSWORD Dutch–English Dictionary © 2014 K Dictionaries Ltd)

Yes. BENAUWD. Dutch for cabin fever, I've had enough, and take a step back from Mama :) Can I get a witness?

And so, hands in the dirt. For this 5th generation farmer, it's in my blood.

My daughter and I have been winter sowing in milk jugs with potting soil and seed that loves the cold. Think bachelor's buttons, larkspur, calendula, black eyed susans.

Take a used transparent milk jug, remove cap, poke holes in the bottom and cut in half just below the handle. Fill bottom half with potting soil, water it, and place seed on the surface of the soil. Duct tape the jug back together and secure outside. Let the snow, rain, and temperature changes do the rest!

When spring has sprung you will start to see seedlings emerge. Let them grow in the jug for a few more weeks, then plant out in the garden. Deep satisfied sigh. Pat yourself on the back and say thank you to your winter "benauwd" self.

Life is like that, right? In the middle of the crazy, we take steps forward. We dare to hope that this trying season won't last forever and that we're going to make it to the other side. That someday in the future new things will grow, and we'll be glad we believed the truth when we couldn't see it.

Take heart precious ones. You matter. Your story matters. And the story is not yet all told.