Why gardening?
I guess it is our soul connect with the Earth, perhaps it feels more complete and happy when we feel, smell and work in the soil. 'Born from dust and to the dust' we return so perhaps there is this dust glued to our soul.
How it all started?
It's my passion, something I caught from my dad as a little child. He was always pottering around in the garden and I would hang around with him, digging up the Earth and planting stuff. I guess iIwas 4 y o then. I have so many hobbies but gardening is right there up at the top of the list.
Growing plants fills me with a kind of satisfaction that not too many activities give me, a kind of spiritual uplifting. It gives me a haven of peace and tranquility when I need it the most. It is my little hideaway from the world. It gives me food that is grown with love, care and in a healthy, organic way. It is the work of my hands and my little service to nature.
A little haven of peace I created for myself from the prying eyes of my neighbor.
What does gardening do for me?
It is my muse, most of my inspiration comes from here. I decide what I want to cook when I am in my garden. The fresh herbs and veggies there help decide my menu for the day. My poetry and creative writing often find their humble beginnings here. My desire to recycle waste organic and otherwise find an outlet here. My inspiration to paint almost always come from images I capture in my garden, so without a doubt my garden is my muse.
Learning flows to me when I toil in my garden, not just learning about plants or the creatures there but lessons for life. I've learned to take pest attacks and disappointments in my stride in my garden and in life. I learned long ago that life isn't a walk on the beach it is all about falls, failures and the ability to rise up and move on.
I learn new skills as I experiment around like these grafts that I have been successful with. A few days ago I tried a 'T' graft on a sweet lime and I hope it works well, right now it seems fine, although I know I should have waited until the temperatures came down a bit. Well this is a learning process and we learn from our failures more.
Hope and positive energy flows when see these flowers in bloom and I know soon I will have enough cherries to enjoy. This is my Barbados cherry plant in bloom. A picture of spring right in the middle of the hottest summer. Don't you like these delicate looking flowers? They make my heart do a hip hop each time I see them. Even on days when I feel down (that is very rare) just strolling around in my garden, pulling up the weeds and taking a photo of a bloom or two is enough to lift my spirits.
Healing to my soul comes from here. Just looking at the beauty around makes me want to grow more. Almost all the walls and every bit of space available on my terrace garden has something growing there. Wherever I look I find peace and contentment even in my small space.
Health and healing for the world is in the plants we grow. The oxygen they produce, the pollution they reduce, the food and medicines they give and most of all the joy they fill the hearts of not just the grower but even a passer by. I have people often stop by, look right up and tell me I have a beautiful garden from what they see of my terrace garden from the road. Good they don't come up or they'll see the mess there LOL.
The health and healing that growing stuff brings is unmatched. During the one and half years of lock-down, it has kept me strong in mind and body. I have never had a moment of boredom or dissatisfaction. I have had enough to keep me occupied and happy. I have been able to keep my emotional health under prefect control during this time when I have seen so many of my friends lose their mind.
I have come to fully understand and appreciate what having a garden really means. The nurturer in me comes alive, the creative powers in me takes a new life. I am a new person when I am in my garden, a whole and complete person.
