Living in a house that is completely surrounded by walls causes at times the feeling of being in a prison. I suppose in many aspects we are, not uniquely, but as a part of a world whose societies in the majority are built more with bricks than Love. In such a situation, we are trying to bring in green, bring in flowers and smells and all the wonderful insects and birds that come with them. It is artificial really, purchasing a plant and then deciding where it would look best, but that said the process thus far has been a beautiful experience of closeness with the soil, learning about the various needs of differing plants, of those that are delicate and those that are hearty, and learning how they are so much more than decorations, but companions that will be there as you grow, and whom you will have the joy of watching grow, and the sorrow of watching suffer.
Having had a little community garden in Waterloo, and now being able to finally grow and love our own herbs and flowers in our very own yard (a thought we never really imagined would happen so quickly), I am realizing the greatness of gardening. Everyone that can really should get there hands dirty. I remember how at the community garden the majority of the plots were cared for by the elderly. The elderly are the wisest and most patient of our societies, and we really should take their advice, not just in what they say, but in what they do. Perhaps it is a natural thing, that after a life of business, or work and family, when alas there is “time”, we return to the wonderful task of Adam. I just don’t know why we choose so often to wait so long.