One of my friends who helps on the farm each week has learning difficulties. Sometimes they help him see things that I would otherwise miss. Like how funny zucchinis are… and let’s face it, they are! Even the word “zucchini” is funny. If you check the farm harvest log, you will see that almost no one knows how to spell it.
Zucchini leaves are so big, the stalks so hairy, the flowers so yellow. Each time my friend finds a fruit hidden away in the depths of the plant, he proclaims, “Zucchini!” and laughs heartily at the ridiculousness of it all.
I don’t mean to make light of the hurdles my friend has to face, but I would love to capture something of his sense of wonder and joy. To see life for what it is: a crazy place where bulging green fruit grows under sprawling leaves, where flowers are dressed up to the nines for the sheer fun of it, and birds sing the day away without a care in the world.