Through the course of our lives, we bide our time doing particular tasks that may either help us to earn our living or build the staircases to our futures and careers. However, amidst these compulsory tasks, most of us also do things which we enjoy doing. Such activities are called ‘hobbies.’

Hobbies are activities which help us escape the daily grind of life and work and give us pleasure and peace of mind. Because we are not being ordered to perform certain jobs which we may not be fond of, hobbies help to inculcate an appreciation for work rather than driving us away from it.
The interesting thing about hobbies is that they dramatically improve our own personalities and character traits, therefore improving our performances better on the whole. They help us discover talents and abilities which we may never have known ourselves to possess also giving us an insight of all the elements around us, making us learn new things each day. For instance, hobbies like stamp collecting, bird watching, photography, sports and music make our time worthwhile and give us information about different things.
My hobby is gardening. The joy of witnessing blooming flowers and leaves fills my heart with a sense of achievement and realizing the fact that the work of my own hands is bearing fruit definitely gives me pleasure.
Gardening also helps to keep me fit, strong and healthy for working away in my garden results in the beneficial kind of exercise that is good for both mind and body. I inherited the love for gardening from my mother and now with her help and interest; I have prepared a small garden in front of our porch. It is a thing of beauty with a grassy carpet and trimmed hedges.

I grow several varieties of plants including the China rose, jasmines, ferns and gladioli in my garden. The recently purchased Christmas tree is a welcome addition too. Every day after school it is my habit to check on my garden and look after the plants. The garden has to be kept under a strict check, mowed punctually as the grass grows at a speedy rate during the rainy season, and cleaned at least twice a week. However, during autumn due to the shedding of the leaves, I have to clean it daily while always adding manure and plant medicine for the protection of these wonderful creations of God. A little bouquet of pretty flowers also makes a wonderful gift for birthdays and anniversaries.
I am also thinking of including vegetables in my garden for it will save us the purchase of vegetables from the market and we may also sell them to other people at respectable sums of money. It is possible to grow the vegetables that are consumed daily and do not take up much space.
It is always a great feeling to have my garden admired and appreciated by other people and it helps me feel like I have accomplished a great goal.