With Purpose

Last Thursday night was spent over at the church to attend a gardening class.  This was no ordinary gardening class, it was given on how Temple Square in Salt Lake City plans and plants their beautiful gardens.  Now I do have the book, Temple Square Gardening, which I read and looked over again and again when I first started to really like gardening, and I would try my darnedest at planning and planting the way the book explained, but never really achieved the right results.  His teachings gave me a determination to try again. I love gardening and can easily spend an entire day outside playing in the dirt, cleaning up leaves, weeding, watering and looking at how things are growing and pondering on what new garden I can put in this year or what needs to wait for next year.

Last Summer's Dahlias

But as I approached this coming gardening season, I have been really hesitant on doing anything, I really don't know if our family will be here to enjoy the fruits of our labor in the garden.  But I was also getting really depressed about not working in the garden as well.  So, what to do?  I went to this gardening class and was not only edified on garden matters, but edified spiritually as well.  He said to "plan your life with purpose".  Well, what does he mean exactly?  How can you actually "plan" for anything anymore, when everything seems to not be in our control?

I looked up the definition of "purpose" noun: 1. the reason for which something exists, or is done, made, used. 2.  an intended or desired result; end; aim; goal 3. determination, resoluteness. verb: 1. to intend, design 2. to resolve to do something 3. to set as an aim, intention, or goal for oneself.
So yes, we can plan our lives with purpose, we may not always achieve what we wanted as the intended result, but there will always be a result when we try.  I will plan my garden this year with purpose and whether or not it will be enjoyed by my family or not, I will know that I, with help, worked hard at starting a beautiful garden. And who cares if I get to enjoy the end result or not, I still got to spend time in the garden.  A beautiful garden equals a beautiful world.