Perspective is everything.

Last night was rough…

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Last night was rough, I’m not gonna lie. I farm vegetables in Nebraska, one of the most temperamental states in the country when it comes to weather. We lost nearly three-quarters of our tomato plants in our high tunnel greenhouse due to a cold snap last night. Sometimes it sounds cliché to talk about the blood, sweat, and tears of farming, but this one lands perfectly in the middle of the tears category. At least it should. For this point in the season, losing 200 tomato plants is about as bad as it gets.

Fortunately, I have a choice in how I react going forward. I could beat myself up for not putting in a space heater. I could be mad at the company “expediting” my thicker frost cloth that’s not arriving until tomorrow. I could be frustrated by the fact that a week ago when it got down to 19 degrees we only lost 12 plants, but last night at 22 degrees we lost over 16 times that many plants.

Or, I could shift my mentality. I could find consolation that we had 80 tomato plants survive not one but two very hard frosts. I could thank my dad for building the high tunnel that has allowed us to extend our season for 8 years now, or for having the frost cloth on hand to save the plants we did in the first place. I could be grateful for the little voice that told me to wait before transplanting the rest of our tomato plants (plus the eggplant, peppers, and cucumbers) last week, as most of them would now be dead. These plants are ready to go in this week, and if everything goes well, we will still be further ahead than last year at this time. Perspective is everything.

I believe that last sentence rings true now more than ever. Amidst this weird time of a global pandemic and social distancing, it can be easy to focus on our frustrations. Personally, I haven’t handled mine the best. I currently work in Denver serving the homeless population with a non-profit called Christ in the City. We were sent home four weeks ago, and in many ways I’m ready to return. I miss my homeless friends. I miss the other 32 missionaries I live with. I miss the structure of our daily schedule. As a community, we missed two weeks of college students coming on mission trips, a 5-day excursion in the mountains (which would have likely included skiing), and a pilgrimage/hike in New Mexico in May that probably won’t happen now.

But perspective is everything, and God seemed to have different plans. As much as I would love to still be in Denver, I’ve had the opportunity to put in probably 250 hours of work (and counting) on the farm that simply wouldn’t have happened otherwise. If we had all stayed in Denver, over half of us would have likely been (or still be) sick already, and we would have been unable to visit or serve any meals to our homeless friends (which has still been happening EVERY WEEK!). Since being home, I’ve been able to spend more time with family than I have in the last few years combined. No matter how I look at our situation, each week further validates that THIS IS EXACTLY HOW THINGS ARE SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN.

I guess what I’m trying to say is this. For as much as we like to believe our plans are perfect, we really don’t understand what is best until it’s sitting in our laps. Once it’s there, we have complete control over how we view our circumstances. I’ve realized for a while now that I complain far too much, but I never really understood how to move past that shortcoming. The last month has taught me it’s actually a lot easier than most people make it out to be. Complaining about less means being grateful for more. “But Ben, is it really that easy?” Heck, I don’t know, I’m still working on my gratitude every day! Check back in a few months and I’ll let you know if I’m still whining about everything. Until then, I believe it’s worth taking a few minutes in a quiet place to ponder one question about yourself, “How is my perspective?” Let me know what you find out.

P.S. A wise man recently shared with me a quote which is remarkably relevant to this conversation. “I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.” ~GK Chesterton

Thank goodness for our replacement tomatoes!