So Even Mother Earth Appears to Ovulate

So even Mother Earth appears to ovulate. With a few days worth of sunshine ahead of me and an hour to work in my garden, I thought it was the perfect time to throw down my organic compost (still not able to get over the manure smell) and start planting my lettuce and chard seeds. All the conditions were right. Fertile soil, bright sunshine, and seeds.

And just because I am one of those people who likes to learn as much about something before I do it or go see it, I jumped onto my computer and googled "farmers guide to planting." Lo! and behold, according to the lunar calendar for the entire month of April and May, each day is outlined for which seeds to plant for each desired crop. I immediately checked out April 5 and it read: "Barren Day. DO NO PLANTING." This obviously meant: avoid planting at all cost or I may be hexed. This was as close to religious dogma as one could get. Well, being a good Catholic, I did not plant, needless to say. I was stopped in my tracks, or dare I say row. There was no way I was going to put anything in that hallowed ground, groomed, watered and organic or not-well, at least for another 24 hours.

The closest thing I have to a green thumb is the dirt under my finger nails. I was not about to take on Mother Earth, and if her time clock said she was ovulating pretty much every day in April except for, and explicitly on April 5, then there was no way I was putting any seed in my garden today. I believe the only seed that could possibly have survived if planted today could only survive, God willing, via the immaculate conception. My seeds could wait one more day.

Only my sister, Kim, who happened to plant her seeds today (I would never dare tell her), could have any chance in heaven that her seeds will sprout (if you are going along with the lunar calendar thing). She happened to be born on December 8: The Feast of the Immaculate Conception, and her name is Mary (but didn't I just say her name was Kim...I am getting to that).

It just so happened that my mother was failing French in college and she prayed and bartered with Mary. She promised to name her first girl after Mary if only she passed French. Well, she passed with a D. Five years fast forward, my mother gives to a baby girl. She tells my father she has to name her "Mary" because of her promise years past. Well, my father said he didn't make any promises. He liked the name Elizabeth, but Mary Elizabeth sounded way too religious for him, so they settled on Mary Kimberly. And remember, she was born on December 8: The Feast of the Immaculate Conception. I was born on January 26 so I will save my seeds for April 6.