We’re going on an adventure. It may not seem very adventurous for some, but for me…it’s way out of my comfort zone. This adventure is called gardening. Yep, that’s right. We’re starting a garden.

Let’s travel back in time for a moment to see a young Kelly. You’ll find a little girl who hates the outdoors because she’s allergic to everything that grows, really creeped out by bugs, and detests getting dirt on her hands. Yep. That girl. If given a choice between using her hands and using her mind, she’d choose homework over mud pies any day. She spends her time indoors reading, watching TV, and doing crossword puzzles. That was me. You know what? Some things don’t change. I still feel exactly the same.

To make it worse, I grew up in an apartment. Neither of my parents owned a home until I was almost grown. So yard work and gardening were never a part of my exposure except for the few times my grandma encouraged me to get my hands dirty at her house. But, it just never appealed to me. So I’m trying to learn what top soil is, how to use a tiller, and all about composting. This is indeed an adventure for me.

For over three decades the majority of my diet consisted of packaged, processed, or restaurant foods. I wasn’t too fond of fruits or veggies and hated the thought that my meat used to be an animal. Packaged food seemed less gross and more sterile, if you will.

So, what’s changed? Well, not much…except that I now understand the body and what it requires to be healthy. I understand the importance of eating “real” food that actually has nutrients. I also understand the importance of being outdoors and making contact with the earth. It’s what our bodies are wired to do…it’s what we need. Do I enjoy it? No. But I really, really, really enjoy being healthy, feeling good, and having hope for a good quality of life long into the future as I age. I don’t just want to live long. I want to live well.

So… The journey begins. Thankfully, my husband is a little more hip on this stuff than I am.

So far we have been growing organic, heirloom plants from seed in the house. Last weekend I planted the 3 surviving cabbage plants and 1 surviving broccoli plant as well as carrot seeds and potato starters in the garden.

Growing them from seed has given me feelings I didn’t expect. I watch over them like a mother and planting them in the garden is akin to letting your child go out alone in the big, mean world. An adventure, for sure.

I figured my blog is the perfect place to document this adventure. Now that you know where I started, you can rejoice with me when I harvest that first vegetable. The journey from Tuna Helper to hand-picked organic cabbage is a long one for me.

Stay tuned…

Photo Credit: gregor_y via Compfight cc