I Am a Recipient - Gifts from Friends

Presents...goodie!  I think of all the times I have been the happy recipient of gifts.  Birthdays, of course... Christmas morning hoping the items picked out from the Sears catalog found their way to under the Christmas tree.  Wedding Showers and Baby Showers.  Every time I receive a gift I feel a little quickening of excitement inside as I unwrap the paper wondering what will be inside and a little edge of anxiety as I wonder if I will like it and be able to make the giver feel appreciated.

As my life has changed with retirement, my material needs are less.  It is difficult to give my children gift suggestions...there is little I need that I do not already have.  I remember my father saying when asked the question, "All I really want is the garage cleaned!"  All I really want is the presence of my children in my life and you can't put a ribbon around that.  However, with the advent of spring, I find myself the recipient of many little thoughtful gifts that I really get excited about.

For example, about two weeks ago my friend, John, gave me a box of worms.

John has a worm bin where he makes worm compost and worm tea for his garden and his worms happily reproduce at an alarming rate.  He spent quite some time separating out a large number of worms that I was able to add to my compost bin.  What a gift and what a guy!

Then last week, Marcia came to class with some little pots of transplanted garlic chives.  She had so many and had to thin them out, so she gave me two pots to bring home.  They are planted just outside the front door so I can easily clip some for a recipe when needed.  How wonderful!

Then a few days ago, I was discussing my summer garden planning in a class and a member I had just met overheard the conversation and said..."Would you like an Heirloom Black Cherry tomato plant?  I have too many that I started from seed and need to find homes for them."  Would I?  Would I?  YES!

Gardeners seem to have a generosity of spirit that makes them eager to not only share gardening experience or advice and the fruits of their labors, but also items to add to your garden.  My only anxiety now is to bite my tongue and remember NOT to say thank you.  According to my Italian immigrant grandmother, Frances, she was taught to never thank someone for a plant or it would not grow. In fact among her friends, they would actually place the gifted plant down and then turn their head so the recipient could "steal" it.  That ensured that it would thrive.  Often I would see her reach out when she thought no one was looking and pinch a leaf from a plant to bring home to propagate.  This is the same woman who said the rosary everyday!  I don't know where this superstition originated, but I am not going to tempt fate.  So I will say, "I am not going to thank you for this wonderful plant because superstition has it that the plant will die if I do."