Tomato chat

I had a little chat with my tomato plants yesterday. It went along these lines:

Me: So, I see you’re not producing many tomatoes these days. See, I water you every day, miracle grow once a week, support, pruning, etc. I was thinking that we could get some food out of the deal.

T: (produces a couple of sickly little blossoms)

Me: Blossoms? In September? That’s good, but I’ve been doing this for a while. Those blossoms are at least three weeks from even “small green tomato” status. Ripe and red? We’re talking over a month.

T: (displays vigorous, leafy, viney growth)

Me: Oh yeah, about all that viney growth (takes out scissors)

T: (shit! shit!)

Me: There, isn’t that better? You’re no taller than the tomato cages, the light and air can keep what little fruit you do produce from rotting, and you’re encouraged to spend your energy producing ripening your fruit, rather than growing additional useless vines.

T: (glare)

Me: Don’t look at me that way, and don’t even talk about soil quality. The peppers have never been so happy. Look at all these cayennes.

All this, of course, led me to think of one of my favorite bible stories:

Matthew 21:18-22: Early in the morning, as he was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” Immediately the tree withered. When the disciples saw this, they were amazed. “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?” they asked.

Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”