November 2, 2007

November Tomatoes

There are some bug holes and cracks and spots, and they aren't perfect -- but this is November 2 and I have gathered vegetables from my garden. I don't know whether to rejoice in the grace of bounty from this little plot of earth at this time of year or to despair that global warming seems more imminent all the time. A hurricane swirls in the ocean, tomatoes and peppers and eggplant ripen in New England, and next door the bicycles are still in the yard. I thought I would return home and find all the leaves gone, but lots of trees are still green and the raking has not yet begun in earnest. I read in the newspaper about a little town in Tennessee that has run out of water. And I read about a town in Mexico that is inundated with too much. The times seem out of joint, somehow, as though nature is protesting our casual treatment of her, as though she is irritated that we have taken her so for granted. I hope this is just a small lover's quarrel, that we can make up for the damage we have done, that it is not too late to mend our relationship with the earth. And, in the meantime, I eat my November tomatoes.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hello Martha,

I am at work and working hard. As no one is in the library (or at least no one that needs my help at the moment) I took the time to refresh myself with your serman. The two things that I really enjoyed about this serman were the examples at the beginning and the story at the end. These stories help me relate. It's like your speaking in parables which really helps me see how the sermon relates to my life. It let me see that I can be, and am, a saint and gave me ideas about how i can improve upon my own life. I will be honest though. At first the second story confused my and I didn't know where you were going with it, but it made sense in the end and really connected well as a whole. It's always nice to be praised as a saint too.