The first thing we had was a little pea

All our handling of the child will bear fruit, 

not only at the moment, 

but in the adult they are destined to become."

Maria Montessori

We sing a simple gardening song this time of year.  We act it out, when we're gathered inside.  We live it out, when we're gardening outside, one time after another. The song's lyrics go like this, with many variations:

(March 1)

"The first thing we had was a little pea (or 'seed'.... or 'bean'....)

The first thing we had was a little pea,

The frist thing we had was a little pea,

The Lord's gonna bless our garden."  (or sometimes, 'the Earth's'....)

(April 3)

"The next thing we had was a little shoot...."

[repeat as above]

(April 10)

"The next thing we had was a little root...."

[repeat]

(May 17)

(June 3)

(June 3)

"The next thing we had was a little vine...."  (or 'a great big vine'....)

[repeat]

(June 10)

"The next thing we had were a lot of peas....
[repeat]

The Lord (...or Earth...) has surely blessed our garden."

(June 10)

And yes, your children who may perhaps refuse many vegetables out of habit at the dinner table, have been eating chard and spinach and peas and lettuce and broccoli, garden to hand to mouth, throughout this spring.  It's a joy to see.

This brings me back to the Montessori quote at the beginning:  "All our handling of the child will bear fruit, not only at the moment, but in the adult they are destined to become."

[And now you can congratulate me on a simple blog with very few words!

Let the summer begin!]

(June 18)