Tuesday, March 24, 2009

watering

watering-”The amount of water you give the plants in your garden is so crucial to their healthy growth. Watering too much or too little can harm your plants, and some of the harm may be irreversible.” —taken from the safer brand website

While reading about watering plants, I was hit by how similar it is to raising children. The safer brand website (linked above) gives some good advice about when to water plants. Gardeners are advised that a few minutes of surface watering are not enough. Plants must be watered in such a fashion that the water seeps to the roots. This is obvious in our children’s lives as well.

Just instructing them on the surface level rarely works, at least not long term. For them to internalize something, to take it to root in their life, they must have proper instruction that reaches down deep. When they are young, this is needed more often, as with newly planted plants. As they establish however, watering plants once a week is sufficient. We can see the parallel in our children. As they grow, they do not need the constant reminders they needed when they were younger. However, as with plants, over-watering can also cause damage and stunted growth.

I have found this to be true in both experiences-in gardening and in raising my kids. I definitely have a tendency to over-water. It is recommended that once plants are established, watering in the morning  or evening is best. This is to prevent the heat of the day from causing evaporation. I can see how this fits into our routine nicely. After a long day in the heat of life, coming together as a family is refreshing. But only when I don’t tend to drown them with my over-watering techniques. As with plants, allowing them to sit too long in too much water will only cause fungus to germinate and thrive.

Perhaps beginning and ending the day with quietness and refreshing words would be an added help in allowing our children to grow into the healthy plants they are destined to be.

Posted by sowingseeds at 16:45:21 | Permalink | No Comments »

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Planning

“Planning for planting next year’s garden actually begins after harvesting the current year’s crops. Removing old plant debris and tilling the soil are two steps towards next year’s garden.”

-from the Safer Brand website

In raising children, we often find ourselves muddling through. They don’t come with pre-packaged instructions, and there are no one-size-fits-all instructions to suit each child’s individual needs. But when we learn our children and watch their growth patterns and learning styles, we can better plan for the road ahead. Using general guidelines and applying them to our particular children can help us as parents to develop a parenting plan. As with planning for next year’s garden, we will do a better job if we start today. If we see our child catching onto a lesson that has been taught, we can see that now is the time to begin preparing the road for the next life lesson which usually comes sooner than we think! If we are prepared, then the lessons won’t be as tough as they might could be. We can see as with plants, if we remove the debris of old, unwanted habits and begin tilling the soil of our children’s hearts and minds, the upcoming lessons can be weathered with little heartache and a steady, sturdy growth.

Posted by sowingseeds at 18:08:38 | Permalink | Comments (2)