A Garden of Blessings

“We have to stop here.” Matt insisted as he pulled over to the side of the road.

“Again?” Stephen said with annoyance.

I understood his frustration. We had planned to cycle 90 kilometers to Kakabeka Falls, but already the day had been filled with interruptions. This morning we had met a total of seven different cyclists making their way across Canada. We had also stopped to explore a shop on the side of the highway, and then took pictures at the sign indicating we had just crossed into the Eastern Time Zone. The morning had certainly been exciting, but we had only cycled about 40 kilometers.

“Maybe you guys haven’t noticed, but we are down to our last litre of water.” Matt pointed out. “If we don’t refill now, it doesn’t look like there will be any lakes or cities for a long time. We should turn into this town and see if anyone can help us.”  

Matt had a good point. As much as I wanted to continue, it would be unwise to go any further without water. Stephen looked impatient, but agreed. We turned off highway 17 into a small town called Raith. The town was so small that it only consisted of a few houses. It didn’t have a restaurant, gas station, or any other place to get water. Feeling a little anxious, we started exploring a bit further. We climbed up a steep gravel road to our right, and at the top of the hill there was a large white fence enclosing someone’s private property. There was an elderly man in the distance tending to his garden, and when he lifted his head from his work, we flagged him down by waving our water bottles in the air. The man beckoned us over, and as we walked through the gate and onto the freshly cut grass, he came to greet us.

“You folks here for water?” he asked. “I’ve got a beautiful granite well that goes 150 meters down into the earth. It’s ice cold and the best water you’ll ever taste!” he smiled as he bragged and I couldn’t help but smile in return.

We shared our thanks and started introducing ourselves as we walked to the well. The man`s name was Rudy. He was tall and frail, but his posture displayed confidence. I could tell by his dark tan that he spent a great deal outside, and as he led us through his yard I took in my surroundings. This man certainly had a unique yard. There seemed to be small houses scattered across the whole property, and as we turned the corner towards the well, a great old boat came into view, hugging the edge of the treeline. It looked like an Orca, a large fishing boat used for saltwater fishing. However, this boat seemed very out of place as we were nowhere near an ocean. The red copper paint was peeling off and it looked too worn out to sail.

“That’s my next project.” Rudy replied, his eyes following my gaze.

He turned on the hose, releasing a fast stream of water. Matt and Stephen quickly gathered all the bottles, filling them to the brim and wetting their hands and necks to cool off.

“Have you found a place to camp for the night?” Rudy asked. “You`re welcome to stay on my land if you want.”

Matt, Stephen and I exchanged a look between us. Rudy seemed really nice, but it was only midday, and we were only halfway to our planned destination.

“Actually, I could use some help from you youngsters. I broke my pelvis a few years back and I have trouble hilling my potatoes. Have you folks ever gardened before? If you stay and help out my wife and I would be happy to make you a sausage and pancake breakfast. How does that sound?”

My eyes lite up with excitement. I love gardens, so an opportunity to help Rudy and learn about gardening would be a lot of fun. I could see Matt had a similar enthusiasm in his eyes.

“A pancake and sausage breakfast?! Sounds delicious!” Matt exclaimed.

Stephen on the other hand, wasn’t sold on the idea.

“That’s really nice of you but we were planning on cycling to Kakabeka Falls. Thanks for the water but we should really get going”.

“You can cycle that distance in a few hours,” Rudy insisted, “It’s all downhill to the Falls. Besides, there’s nothing there for food. You’ll be much more comfortable staying here for the night.”

Stephen could tell he was outnumbered.

“Fine, we’ll stay.” Stephen mumbled and hunched his shoulders as he followed Rudy around the rest of his property.

I quickly discovered that Rudy was very gifted in mechanics and welding. As he gave us a tour around his yard it was like walking through a man’s playground. Rudy had built an eleven foot tall overhang with a chain hoist so that he could work on his projects in the shade. He had also made his own saw mill. It had a 4 foot blade and could cut trees into lumber with amazing precision. Rudy had welded together his own cement mixer, and used a large barrel to make a bear trap. He transformed an Old Dutch Chip truck into a motorhome, and even had a 1950’s Three Ton Ford truck waiting for it’s last paint job.

“I know I just graduated as an AME, but I feel like I have so much to learn about being a mechanic.” Matt commented in awe.

Rudy smiled. “Isn’t she a cutie?” he said, pointing into the long grass. It was the front end of a little yellow bulldozer. It’s headlamps made it look like a giant bug.

“She’s called a Caterpillar and she was built in 1912. You wanna give her a ride?” Rudy asked Matt.

“No way! This baby still runs?!” Matt exclaimed.

“Like a swiss watch.”

Matt jumped onto the old seat and started the engine. It roared to life and echoed throughout the surrounding hills. Watching Matt and Rudy together reminded me of two boys playing with legos. They popped open the hood and looked over the engine. I could see Matt asking questions and trying to absorb all the wisdom that Rudy had to offer.

When the tour had ended, Rudy introduced us to his wife Anna. She was a beautiful woman and a great chef. She made us all dinner with the fresh vegetables from her garden. Matt, Stephen, and I quickly understood that Rudy and Anna relied a great deal on the garden as their main source of food. So after dinner, we eagerly rushed outside to help Rudy with his garden.

Hilling potatoes is not an easy job. First Stephen had to use the hoe to break up the soil that had hardened, then Matt would pull up the loose soil and make neat mounds to cover the potato plants. There were eight rows of potatoes, but they also had beets, tomatoes, carrots, broccoli, and cabbage. However, it wasn’t just the potatoes that needed hilling. The entire garden had been overtaken with weeds.

“I used to have twelve rows of potatoes” Rudy said. “But it seems like every year this garden gets more and more difficult to maintain. With my sore hip and Anna’s aching wrists, I was worried we would lose the garden this year.” Rudy’s voice started to waver as his voice filled with emotion. “Just this morning I was praying to God, and I asked Him to send me some workers to help me”.

To our surprise, Rudy leaned over and gave Stephen a big hug. “I’m just so thankful for you folks. You are an answer to my prayer.”

After Rudy walked back to the house, Matt, Stephen and I worked in silence, thinking about everything Rudy had shared. Finally, Stephen broke the silence. “You know, I was really frustrated all day. I really wanted to stick to my plan this afternoon and cycle to Kakabeka Falls. I even thought about riding out ahead of you guys.” Matt and I listened quietly. We had been so distracted with Ruddy’s toys that we hadn’t realised how much Stephen had been struggling. “But I think God has been trying to show me that it’s more important that I go at His pace. I understand now that God has a purpose for us here, and it’s more important that I do what God wants, and not what I want”.

Stephen then looked down at the unfinished garden and at the setting sun. “If you guys are okay with this, I think that we should spend the day tomorrow finishing this garden for Rudy. Do you think he’d let us stay another night?”

I smiled. Stephen’s suggestion matched precisely what was on my heart. “I think that’s a great idea.”

With all of us in agreement Stephen started to hoe the ground once more with a new found passion. Perhaps he had too much zeal because on the next swing the hoe snapped right in half.

“Ah, no! Not again! This is the second hoe I’ve broken this evening!” Stephen exclaimed.

“Well, you can ask Ruddy if we can stay another night,” Matt laughed, “but at this rate he might just say you’re more trouble than you’re worth”.

Sometimes, when we set out to accomplish our own goals and ambitions, it can narrow our vision to see the Will that God for our lives. I also find that as humans, we have a terrible habit of making our schedules so rigid, that we miss opportunities to participate in building the Kingdom of God. The Bible says in Philippians 2:3-4 “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” Stephen, Matt and I learnt a valuable lesson from this experience. We could have pushed forward to accomplish our own goal, and it would have resulted in our own glory. However, on this particular day we put our own schedules aside, and Jesus was able to answer a prayer through us. The result is that Jesus received all the glory. I have found from my own experience that God loves to answer prayers by using believers who are listening to the Holy Spirit. They are the jewels of the church, and they are doing the Will of God everyday, simply because they are listening, and have made themselves available. My ambition is no longer to accomplish my own goal for my own glory. My new ambition is make Jesus my goal, so that through me he can receive all of His Glory!