Report From An Opinionated Gardener – November 30
I got a package of amaryllis bulbs from White Flower Farm today. They were sent as a thank you for having Barbara Pierson, the nursery manager, on GardenLine recently. It was a nice surprise, and got me thinking about the value of a thank you that goes the extra mile.
One of my core beliefs is that saying thank you is important. Whether you’re expressing gratitude to someone who did something nice, giving thanks to God, or just feeling appreciative for life itself, that expression is valuable.
Gratitude is a recurrent theme on this blog, certainly. When I look at the times this topic is tagged, it goes back to the beginning of Whole Life Gardening in 2008. Today, however, I’m thinking about the value of going just a bit further. Sometimes just saying it is enough, and in other instances, more is more.
Don’t misunderstand: it’s not the amount or even something material that’s important. As nice as that package of amaryllis is, and I do love them, it wasn’t the bulbs themselves that made this “thank you” so special…it was because it wasn’t expected. Going the extra mile to express gratitude is more about doing something unanticipated then it is about gifts or other tangible goods.
Note to self: remember to say thank you more often, but do so in a way that is unpredicted, perhaps, and definitely in a manner that comes from the heart.
I don't get many lemons off of my Meyer lemon trees, but I cherish them all the more because I don't expect them.
