Last Chance: Find Joy & Healing in Your Own Garden Now!

Check out this collection of gardening stories with joy, hope, and healing right now! [GreenPrints]( May 11, 2023   [GET joy, hope & healing from your garden NOW!]( When you read this special GreenPrints Collection Healing Gardens: Engaging stories to boost, heal & soothe your soul, you get inspiration and rejuvenation from all the heartfelt stories. Start reading—and healing—right now! Dear Gardener, Thank you for reading content from GreenPrints—we appreciate your loyalty, and we share with you below a premium story that is certain to make you think about your own healing garden. When you read the special GreenPrints Collection [Healing Gardens: Engaging stories to boost, heal & soothe your soul]( ?&mqsc=EP4409835) today, you get soothing stories that will pull at your heart strings! [Healing Gardens Collection]( Here are some of the most personal and emotional stories—in the special GreenPrints Collection [Healing Gardens: Engaging stories to boost, heal & soothe your soul]( ?&mqsc=EP4409835)! Please check out this story from the GreenPrints Collection [Healing Gardens: Engaging stories to boost, heal & soothe your soul]( ?&mqsc=EP4409835), entitled “The Last Two”—you’ll feel the emotion and the healing from this poignant story! [The Last Two]( A pair of leftover seedlings find a very special home. By Barbara Josephine Adams [old man]  My favorite Spring garden ritual is starting my tomato seeds. In late March, I fill ten little pots with a mixture of peat and earth-scented compost. Then I press down the spongy stuff and poke a hole in the middle of each pot, loving the feel of the dark fluff, even the bits that stay under my fingernails. Knowing I need exactly ten tomato plants, I always drop two or three little seeds into each hole, adding extra seeds in case some don’t sprout. Any extras that come up will need to be thinned out and tossed. Oh, but how I dread snipping out the extra starts. Please, I think, no extras. I don’t want to thin them. All the sprouts are newborns, just coming to life and reaching for the sun. I’m their caretaker. I don’t want to choose which ones can live and which ones have to die. Yes, I know. I rip chickweed and shepherd’s purse out of my garden beds without feeling a bit guilty. Indeed—I admit it—I feel a goodly portion of delight. But that’s their fault! I hadn’t planted them there. They could have grown anywhere but dared to squat in my garden. The tomato seedlings, on the other hand, sprouted just to please me. How could I now grab their little stems—and snip? This year, something inside me snapped. I just couldn’t do it. So I gently repotted every single sprout. None of them died. Soon I had close to 27 healthy tomato plant starts, 10 to keep and a surplus of 17. It wouldn’t be easy, but I had to find good homes for them all. I felt sure I could do it. I’d found loving homes for orphaned kittens and for gigantic zucchini. Once I even found a good home for a revoltingly ugly old easy chair by putting it outside with a “FREE” sign on it. Admittedly, after three days, no one had taken it. In fact, some sneak put an equally ugly throw pillow on it and drove off before I could catch him to give him his pillow—and my easy chair. But by the fourth day, even it had been taken to a new home. So, The Great Tomato Orphan Train began. I gave some to the gals in my dentist’s office, some to neighbors, and some to lemonade-selling kids who were willing to try to sell two or three garden starts. But after everyone had what they wanted, two remained. Seemed like an awkward number. If it’d been just one, I would have grudgingly found a way to cram it in. But two? Too many. What now? Then I remembered Janey. Until recently I had worked part-time as a gardener for several elderly people in town. Janey had been a favorite client; indeed, I thought of her as a friend. I’d become friends with Christa, her grown daughter, as well. She’d call occasionally me from her distant town to ask how I thought her mom was doing. I loved Janey’s garden. It edged her entire back lawn, about three feet wide in some places, more like five in others. It was a patchwork quilt of plants she’d received from various people. Vegetable plants, including tomatoes, were interspersed with blocks of flowers such as striped red petunias and orange marigolds. My last two tomatoes could surely find a good home there. So I decided to drive by Janey’s the next day to see if she’d like them. Late the next morning, I drove to Janey’s home and knocked on the door. No answer. Her garage door was always closed, so there was no way for me to know if her car was there or not. I didn’t worry; people don’t answer the door for many good reasons, and Janey wasn’t overly dependent. Christa had never expressed concern that she might not be able to take care of herself. It was a warm day and there was no wind, so I left the two tomato plants in a very visible spot on her front porch where she’d easily see them when she returned home. I’d intended to call Janey and let her know I was the culprit who’d dropped off the tomato plants and that I’d come get them if she didn’t have room for them. But then I did a few other errands, visited with some other friends, and—you know how it is—forgot to call. The next day, Christa called me. “Was that you who left two tomato plants on my mom’s porch yesterday?” I smacked my forehead and apologized for making her call me, when it should have been the other way around. “Oh, no problem!” she said. “Actually, you won’t believe what happened. When you came by, I was out with Mom, taking her to the funeral of one of her lifelong friends.” How sad, I thought, saying goodbye to someone who’d been part of your life for so long. Christa continued and I almost dropped my phone. “Every Spring,” she said, “except for this one, of course, my mom’s friend would come by and give her exactly two tomato plants. I can’t tell you what a joy it was for Mom, and me, too, to see two tomato plants waiting there for us when we got home.” “Mom broke into a big smile, picked them up, and held them close—I’d never seen anyone hug a potted plant before. Then she said, ‘Hello, dears. I have just the spots waiting for the two of you.’” “We both knew that they probably came from you. But we both also felt there was more to it than that. Something special had just happened. Mom’s mood brightened. She felt better the rest of the day.” After we hung up, I went out to visit the ten siblings of those two tomato plants I’d given away. Soon I’d be putting them into my own garden. And I knew that every time I tended them the rest of the year, I’d remember those two extra ones I’d given Janey—and how happy I was that something stopped me from nipping them when they first sprouted. ❖ [old man]  Illustrations by Heather Graham  What a healing story! And the GreenPrints Collection [Healing Gardens: Engaging stories to boost, heal & soothe your soul]( ?&mqsc=EP4409835) has many more stories for you—stories that deliver you hope and joy, too. Including this featured story—“The Last Two”—you get all the stories in this special GreenPrints Collection on healing gardens including: - “The Secret Garden” - “Scottish Lot” - “Chronic Pain & Garden Therapy” - “A Bag of Sugar” - “Budgie” - “Eight Volunteer Pumpkins” - “Kingwood Connections” - “My Mother’s Seed” - “A Garden Can Heal” - “Love in the Time of Corona” - “Lilacs” - “Healing Gardens” - “Troubled Wayfarer” - “The Last Two” - “A Veteran’s Garden” - “One Million Daisies” - “Love and Daffodils Forever” [Healing Gardens Collection](  And new stories are being added to this special Collection all the time—you get access to all of them! Please read what some subscribers say about how GreenPrints helps them: “GreenPrints is a balm to my soul. I carry it with me everywhere.” —Olya Williams, Jacksonville, FL “It's the only magazine I read cover to cover, and I keep every issue!” —Valerie Cranmer, Belen, NM “This is the most amount of joy one can get for this amount of money!” —Sonja Razey, Sagle, ID The only way to get full access to the GreenPrints Collection [Healing Gardens: Engaging stories to boost, heal & soothe your soul]( 13 other Collections filled with stories about gardening humor, gardening science, animals in the garden, mystical gardens, gardening mishaps, and more—is to get [GreenPrints All-Access Membership]( with a whole year’s worth of stories in a full subscription to GreenPrints Magazine, both print and digital editions … and benefits galore for only $20 for an entire year! [$20 SPECIAL! GET A 67% DISCOUNT WHEN YOU CLAIM YOUR BENEFITS TODAY!]( [Claim your GreenPrints All-Access Membership now, and you get all the gardening stories to delight you, make you laugh, and fill you with heartwarming inspiration and motivation. Claim your benefits now!]( [ONLY $20 FOR AN ENTIRE YEAR!]( Right now, you’re eligible for this limited-time invitation—to claim a premium [GreenPrints All-Access Membership]( with this Special Offer. You get a full year of membership in a club that provides you all the gardening stories to warm your heart, inspire you, and make you laugh. And for only $20 right now, that’s 67% off the regular $60 price! [Introducing GreenPrints All-Access Membership—Only $20 for an Entire Year!]( [GreenPrints all access]( Your [GreenPrints All-Access Membership]( has privileges and benefits that are reserved exclusively for premium members like you. [Claim Your $20 Membership Now]( Summary of All-Access Membership Benefits 01 A full year of GreenPrints All-Access Membership, an exclusive club for those who want to enjoy the greatest gardening stories ever—save $40 off the annual cover price, a 67% discount! $60/year Now Only: $20/year! 02 1-year subscription to GreenPrints Magazine, quarterly issues filled with humorous and heartwarming stories—in print, delivered directly to your door, and sent to you digitally as soon as issues are published! INCLUDED 03 Full and immediate access to the GreenPrints Digital Library—your membership includes access to the current digital magazine issue and 30+ back issues, a digital version of The Weeder's Reader—plus the library is constantly growing with new content regularly added! INCLUDED 04 Instant and unlimited access to all GreenPrints Collections—curated and comprehensive collections of stories from the heart, organized around specific topics such as humor, joy, romance, mystical and healing gardens, and gardening mishaps. And audio collections for your listening enjoyment! INCLUDED 05 Full access to quarterly kits, printable and practical! Seasonal Garden Planning Calendar Kits, quarterly seasonal Celebration Kits, and Garden Collection Kits—all downloadable and printable! INCLUDED 06 GreenPrints Insider—You get our exclusive email newsletter, for premium members only, to guide you through the GreenPrints Library by highlighting articles, magazine issues, story collections, and audio collections that you won't want to miss—delivered regularly to your email inbox! INCLUDED 07 FREE BONUS: The Weeder’s Reader—a compilation of the sixteen greatest stories ever published by GreenPrints. You get a FREE copy mailed to you, plus instant and unlimited access to the digital version in the library! FREE [Claim Your $20 Membership Now]( Become a [GreenPrints All-Access Member]( today—while this special $20 offer lasts! Sincerely, [Bill Dugan] Bill Dugan Editor & Publisher GreenPrints P.S. Claim your benefits with a spot in [GreenPrints All-Access Membership]( today—only $20 for an entire year with this Special Offer, a 67% discount off the regular price! P.P.S. You deserve the benefits of a healing garden … and to get a regular source for joy, hope, and rejuvenation—please act now to claim your [GreenPrints All-Access Membership]( and get started reading all these healing stories! [GreenPrints All-Access Membership Special Offer—Only $20!]( 67% Off the Cover Price Now! [GreenPrints all access](  Claim your GreenPrints All-Access Membership today and get all the greatest gardening stories ever—heartwarming and funny, for you now! [YES, SIGN ME UP FOR JUST $20 FOR AN ENTIRE YEAR!]( About GreenPrints Magazine: GreenPrints brings you joy, humor, inspiration, projects, artwork, and advice from our worldwide community of gardening writers, humorists, and illustrators. Our stories, artwork, and kits will touch your heart, lift your spirits, and provide you hours of entertainment about all things gardening. Our interactive projects will help you build your community, beautify your home, and be a more successful gardener and happier human being. More than 250,000 gardening enthusiasts share the joy, laughter, and camaraderie that can only be found with GreenPrints. You are receiving this email as part of your free subscription to email updates from GreenPrints Magazine. If you no longer wish to receive this update as part of your free subscription, please click the unsubscribe link below. [MANAGE PREFERENCES]( [Unsubscribe]( Help us be sure your email update isn't filtered as spam. Adding our return address CustomerCare@GreenPrints.com to your address book may 'whitelist' us with your filter, helping future email updates get to your inbox. [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Send us a message]( Copyright © 2023 Mequoda Systems, LLC GreenPrints Magazine P.O. Box 1537, Attleboro, MA 02703 Email: CustomerCare@GreenPrints.com [Our Privacy Policy]( Having trouble viewing this email? [View online](.