Recently on a windy afternoon, a torn slip of paper blew into the yard and when I picked it up to toss into the trash can, I saw it was part of a list or note written by who knows who, or when, but the words jotted on the paper were: “cold and dreary-- not a good day for planting.” I put the paper in the trash and went on my way, only to think about the person who wrote that.
We each have experienced cold and dreary days and times that were not good for planting. What was it that person was wanting to plant, I wondered—a vegetable or flower garden, perhaps an orchard of trees or a single ornamental bush. Who knows?
A friend commented one idea of entertainment for him was to “people watch.” He said he wonders who people are, where they’re going, what sort of lives they live, and what each does for a living. “My son likes to give them names and even makes up details about each one’s lives,” he said. His comment brought back a game I used to play with my son when he was a youngster. We’d see a man on the sidewalk or at a station store or beach, and we’d say, “There’s Vernon Batson.” Vernon Batson was no person, and Vernon Batson was every person.
Suffice it to say, a person’s imagination is a gift. It allows us to wonder, ponder, wish, and dream. It reminds me of Emily Dickinson’s lines, “There is no frigate like a book.” Our imaginations let us get acquainted with ourselves, with the Vernon Batsons of the world, and with mysteries we often think about on rainy, cold, and dreary days, --days that are not good for planting.
I stayed up until midnight watching the George Tech vs. George football game the other night. It went into eight overtimes. Yes, I like a good football game. I wonder why the nations of the world can’t settle their disputes and wars with a spirited competitive sporting event, football, soccer, basketball, hockey, or whatever. From what I gather from weather reports and the Farmer’s Almanac, there will be many cold dreary days this winter,-- days not good for planting. But I can imagine. And I can watch football and keep track of how my Amaryllis grows. When I bought it at the hardware store, i saw Vernon Batson buying one too.