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The Garden and the Gardener

When you’re young, you have thoughts, ideas, dreams and your excitement is contagious. You start a garden, you prepare your path and collect the seeds that will become a future. The future is not clear to you but you’re young and it doesn’t matter.

The black soil will give in to weeds, distractions from your idea and you will either tear them out with frustration and anger, poison them with resentment or consider a task, a job the gardener does. You will persevere through the heat of summer and you will eventually wonder why you started the whole process.
The summer will get long and hot, you will toil in vain, you will lose sight of the future and all interest will evade you. Your hands will loose their love for the soil and the wounds will heal, get infected and heal again but you will continue your efforts even after you’ve forgotten the whole purpose of your original task.

Flowers will come and go, many of them will wither in the incessant heat and some you will waste money and time to maintain only to watch them give into the darkness of the soil. The heat will end, you can either enjoy every day of its presence or you can toil exhausted, desperate for autumn.

Autumn comes, quiet but often stormy. You will see birds and butterflies as if they were old friends you almost forgot. The caterpillars, the eggs, the new colors that flock to your garden, you will remember why you started in the first place.

A child in you will realize, in the cool autumn breezes, a presence outside itself. You will notice the calm, peaceful wings of a monarch as it spirals in thick cool air. The warblers will sing for you and whisper in the trees you grew and you will realize it was all worthwhile.

You were the gardener with impatient fingers. You were the enthusiast who lost hope and direction but there is always the sun and even in its absence, a voice speaks through swaying grasses of a higher source of joy that no garden here on earth could fulfill.

We realize small gifts given only in a season. As the trees give up their days and the leaves give up their lives you will be given a secret you can decide to listen or not but it speaks to all of us. The gardener knows, as the busy bees go from flower to flower and the colors of the summer paint your day. You will remember why you started and with winter you will have that moment to put life and all of its glory into perspective, than you will have wisdom that only a successful gardener knows.

Next Post: Wisdoms of a Gardener.

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Written by stevelinebaugh

Oil painter and pastel artist, writer, photographer, graphic designer,
originally from New Jersey

5 Comments

  1. Wow Steve, First of all, so good to see you wiring again my friend. Nad you are so right about every word. We question many things in life. They bring us joy, then they are gone. Is it worth it, or not to continue. I am glad we came to the same conclusion. Life is worth it.

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    • Hi Carol,

      I’m sorry for my absence. I really appreciate your connection and your words have been very helpful to me. It has been seven weeks Matthew has been at boot camp-sounds like he’s doing really well. I miss him very much but I am enjoying my moments. Expect to write a lot more and I will check out all your stuff as well. I hope all is well with you.
      talk soon.