Yo howdy All Y’all – it is a beautiful day. Yay, the days still short are getting longer!
Gardening with God in our “Garden of AUS” (Austin’s Urban Sanctuary) is challenging. TheyThemThy always
presents opportunities to steward towards accepting abundance and it is hard to keep up. I’m learning to
accept the abundance – unexpected flowers and seeds, overgrowth beyond intentional borders, spindly last
season stems feeding the birds and feeding butterflies still. More weeds.
Our little garden plots produced over a ton of fresh, healthy and organic produce and herbs for the hungry
this past year – mostly at Angel’s House Soup Kitchen, but also for passersby housed and unhoused, and even
some of us. Ready to harvest now is an assortment of greens, a handful or two of peppers, and one very
out-of-season eggplant.
Our Petite Pantry needs more support from us. Patrons have been surprised to find kale and collards in ou
pantry, but I only know of two street residents that welcome that surprise. They now know they are
welcome to harvest as they need (and properly pick the leaves from the bottom, leaving the center top). No
matter what time of day or which day I’m in the garden, the Petite Pantry is visited by hungry fellow humans.
If you drive out of our parking lot this Sunday New Year’s Eve, your gonna be helping with the garden. The
overgrowth of the moonflowers (aka Angel Trumpets) that bloomed so magnificently from Spring to Fall have
dried and are in a low row across the pavement by the gate. Driving over these crushes the stems and
accelerates their ability to build the hillside terraces with structure decomposing into soil. Thank you for your
help with this – now everyone showing off the “Garden of AUS” will be able to say, “and I helped”.
The gardens have been softening the edges of our church. It is rewarding to witness passersby notice,
neighbors walk and appreciate, strangers becoming aware that all four sides offer produce and herbs and
healing aloes within reach, reflecting the healing and inspiring comfort available within our sanctuary – some
of whom have joined us inside.
I’m not on Facebook often, but I enjoy seeing Pastor Layne’s postings of photos of our abundance of bloom
Consider sharing his posts, his meme’s are often excellent to share, and each serve also as a way of softening
for others an understanding that to be “Christian” is to be “Christ-like”, welcoming and affirming.
It is, however, more fun to welcome and affirm friends walking about our church place.
Be well, be safe, know joy.
Phil