Victoria woman grows 323-pound pumpkin, shares journey on social media
While Carmen Spagnola puts a lot of effort into making and tending to her flower garden, the same couldn’t be said for growing her first pumpkin.
"It felt like this random miracle that just happened," Carmen smiles.
Despite doing very little, the pumpkin grew relatively big.
"I’m so in awe of what nature can do," she says.
So Carmen started searching for what she could do to help a gourd grow even larger next time, and found a picture of record-breaking pumpkin producer Dave Chan.
"It looked like he’d won the Super Bowl or something," Carmen smiles, pointing to the photo of Dave with his arms raised in triumph beside an almost 2,000-pound pumpkin.
After contacting him for advice, Carmen went to work on a pumpkin patch that quickly seemed to devour her driveway.
"It just became this relationship that I couldn’t stop tending," she says.
Carmen measured the pumpkin daily, while her husband Ruben calculated its estimated weight and captured her reaction on camera.
The roughly 323-pound pumpkin is shown.
While the pumpkin grew 10 to 20 pounds a day, Carmen’s exuberance also increased.
"All the love and attention and care I was pouring into it was immediately paying back in dividends," Carmen smiles.
So Carmen decided to pay the positivity forward by sharing her pumpkin’s progress (and joyful reactions) on social media.
Along with the exhilarating high of the pumpkin’s rapid growth, Carmen says she experienced the terrifying low of its potentially deadly split stem.
She found solace in a soundtrack of inspiring songs from the 1980s.
"Peter Gabriel’s 'Don’t Give Up' to 'Don’t Stop Believin' by Journey," Carmen laughs.
"And when I was hot pepper spraying it, to prevent a rat from eating it, I started inhaling it, and the song that came to me was 'Take My Breath Away' by Berlin!"
Whether she’s sharing her pumpkin playlist on Spotify or pumpkin pampering on TikTok, the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.
"When I’m feeling joy, it’s triggering hope and possibility in other people," Carmen says. "And that’s not just a cliché, that’s neuroscience."
You see, Carmen works as a trauma therapist and calls joy "emotional nutrition."
"It’s really important that you don’t minimize or negate [joy]," Carmen says. "Whatever delights you, you should share it."
Which is why Carmen’s going to keep the gusto for gourds going and keep it growing past its current weight of 323 pounds. After harvesting this one for Halloween she’s striving to cultivate a record-breaker next year.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.
Demonstrators kicked out of Ontario legislature for disruption after failed keffiyeh vote
A group of demonstrators were kicked out of the legislature after a second NDP motion calling for unanimous consent to reverse a ban on the keffiyeh failed to pass.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
RCMP uncovers alleged plot by 2 Montreal men to illegally sell drones, equipment to Libya
The RCMP says it has uncovered a plot by two men in Montreal to sell Chinese drones and military equipment to Libya illegally.
Government agrees to US$138.7M settlement over FBI's botching of Larry Nassar assault allegations
The U.S. Justice Department announced a US$138.7 million settlement Tuesday with more than 100 people who accused the FBI of grossly mishandling allegations of sexual assault against Larry Nassar in 2015 and 2016, a critical time gap that allowed the sports doctor to continue to prey on victims before his arrest.
Man wanted in connection with deadly shooting in Toronto tops list of most wanted fugitives in Canada
A 35-year-old man wanted in connection with the murder of Toronto resident 29-year-old Sharmar Powell-Flowers nine months ago has topped the list of the BOLO program’s 25 most wanted fugitives across Canada, police announced Tuesday.
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.
Pro-Palestinian protests roiling U.S. colleges escalate with arrests, new encampments and closures
The student protests of Israel's war with Hamas that have been creating friction at U.S. universities escalated Tuesday as new encampments sprouted and some colleges encouraged students to stay home and learn online, after dozens of arrests across the country.
Tabloid publisher says he pledged to be Trump campaign's 'eyes and ears' during 2016 race
A veteran tabloid publisher testified Tuesday that he pledged to be Donald Trump 's 'eyes and ears' during his 2016 presidential campaign, recounting how he promised the then-candidate that he would help suppress stories that had the potential to harm the Republican's election bid.