In the movie Field of Dreams, Ray Kinsella, played by Kevin Costner, hears a voice coming from the corn fields whispering “If you build it, he will come.” Many people think it is “they will come” but it is just misquoted. Anyhow— I have always been fascinated by the movie and how it drives the man to build this baseball field. What makes a person pour such energy into a project built on faith?
Well, I think the answer is that faith becomes bigger than the “what ifs.” And that applies to my mentality when I created my little garden. When I moved to Minnesota six years ago, I was baffled by something— I did not see any pollinators. None. And to me that was strange because we live in farm country and there are farm fields everywhere. At the time I did not know much about agriculture and what goes into growing the land non-organically. But once I learned, it all started to make sense. And I was a woman on a mission.
I started doing research and planting pollinator-friendly plants to try to attract them. It has taken 4 years but alas— it is working. I have seen not just an increase in pollinators, but also in the diversity. The first year there was not much activity, but I remained strong and continued to push forward. As time went on, more insects came— bees, butterflies, black wasps, cricket and even lady bugs… A couple of years ago, we had so many march butterflies that I think I started crying. You can see a short video here.
This year we have had some butterflies, but this is the year of the bees. Thank goodness that I am not allergic to bees, because I have never seen so many different kinds of bee in one place. So much that I had to check a bee identification chart. We have had bumble bees, long-horned bees, and squash bees to name a few. We even had a few honey bees.
Yesterday, as I stood in the little garden in the evening, I closed my eyes and listened. The sound of the soft breeze, the buzzing of the bees, the jumping of the little crickets. Then I opened my eyes and we had fireflies too. There are moments that can overwhelm the soul with emotion— this was one of them for me. It took a few years, but the sweat and effort that I put into it is paying off. It is not a big garden and I am not having a giant impact in the world. But I am proud to be doing what I can to offset the farming-methods happening around me. If, in some small way, I that can protect the biodiversity that I am seeing, I will consider that a win. And to me, this little place build on faith is a success story born from a whisper in a movie and a love for nature. I built it, and they came. Happy gardening!
You may find me joining some of these fun link-ups: Heart & Soul, Inspire Me Monday In a Vase on Monday, Mosaic Monday, Pink Saturday, Nature Notes, Grace at Home, Encouraging Hearts & Home, Wonderful Wednesday Blog-Hop, Farmhouse Friday, Garden Bloggers Bloom Day, Garden Affair, Saturdays Sparks Link Party, Love Your Creativity Link-Party, Farmhouse Friday, Fridays at the Firehouse