Being in nature is one of my biggest inspirations and places of healing, and now my garden is doing the same thing. Last year, for the first time, we had the time and resources to create a little backyard sanctuary. In addition to providing some fresh produce, the garden is a place of creativity, comfort, and I’m finding it a place of learning that reflects life and what I need. Like life, the garden also requires consistent care.
I’ve been reminded that the most important aspect of the garden is the attentive presence of the gardener. Invaders like pests and weeds can show up at any time. Disease can take out a plant if left unchecked. Watering is a continual need and challenge, especially in the summer months. These are all things you know of course, it’s just that I am now intentionally living them.
Life is a like a garden and the more I am in mine, the more I feel at home with myself.
My dear granddaughter has been an enthusiastic garden helper this year, making sweet memories together, along with her sisters.
After we moved into a new-to-us house, we spent quite a bit of time and effort in the new yard. I wrote six blog posts about the process and outcomes. I researched what to grow in raised beds and found I tried to cram too many plants into too small of spaces. This year I went with the ‘less is more’ theory. It worked out much better for me anyway because in the Spring I was deep in the pattern design course and on my computer even more than normal.
The parsley and cilantro that languished last year have both reseeded and this year display full rows of their edible leaves to use this spring and summer. Instead of planting squash and cucumbers on the trellises, I planted sugar snap peas. The squirrels dug up and ate the first planting, but I tried again and they grew! Adding some nasturtiums at the end of the containers give color and an insect distraction. This picture of the peas was taken about a month ago. It is now July and the parsley and cilantro are starting to go to seed with the hotter than normal summer weather. I removed some of them and left some to reseed. I also stuck a spaghetti squash seed on the end of one of the boxes and a Delicata squash seed in the other, just because I had the seeds and the space. Another experiment…
Below is a new watercolor and pencil spread in my illustrated garden journal that shows two of this year’s raised bed garden boxes. they are 2’ x 4’ each.
Continually learning from the garden
I think many people who garden sense the spiritual aspect of it and the continual relatability to our natural life. Knowing that the most important part of maintaining a garden is the attentive presence of the gardener reminds me of God’s continual care and presence in my life. No matter what weeds, pests, or inclement weather that comes my way, He is still with me attending to the various needs of each season.
Learning what is good to grow in this season of my life and what needs to be uprooted is a theme that gently speaks to me as I tend my garden.
Perfectionism, something I struggle with, has to be let go of. There are always transitions taking place in the garden. Dying and growing naturally residing side-by-side. I don’t really like that part. It requires me to uproot, prune, and also celebrate the small beginnings of new life. There are also different things for different seasons.
The life lessons are endless in the garden. There is continual learning and yearning. No wonder I have found my little garden to be my outdoor classroom and my sanctuary.
May the garden of your life grow with abundance!
Valerie
Links to gardening & garden journal posts
The beginning of this garden: https://www.valeriesjodin.com/blog/mygardenjournal-art-in-real-life-14?rq=garden
Gardening reflecting life: https://www.valeriesjodin.com/blog/mygardenjournal-art-in-real-life-15?rq=garden
We were meant to live in a garden: https://www.valeriesjodin.com/blog/mygardenjournal-art-in-real-life-15?rq=garden
Enjoy the process, take the time, find the beauty: https://www.valeriesjodin.com/blog/mygardenjournal-art-in-real-life-15?rq=garden
Life is like a garden: https://www.valeriesjodin.com/blog/lifeislikeagarden-art-in-real-life-18?rq=garden
Tending the garden of my heart: https://www.valeriesjodin.com/blog/gardenofmyheartjournal-art-in-real-life-19?rq=garden
In the sanctuary of my garden: https://www.valeriesjodin.com/blog/sanctuary-of-my-garden
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