How Does My Garden Grow?

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I went to sleep very late last night and I was counting on the fact that, since I had no pressing issues to attend to, I could sleep in. No, that was not to be. I woke up after a few hours to go to the bathroom and that's when I heard it...the siren call of my garden begging for attention. Try as I might I could not go back to sleep. When she calls me, I must answer. Where I intended nothing more than to water the garden, She would not have it. She had been patient long enough, suffering through my extended periods of busyness wherein I could not tend to her. It was time to dress her up for the summer and She wanted me to lay out her clothes.

The sky was overcast with clouds that threatened rain. The air was somewhat cooler than it had been in the past week so it seemed like a good time to do the work that needed doing. Although I had pulled weeds and transplanted flowers last week, there still remained empty patches rapidly refilling with weeds and large clumps of marigolds to be thinned. Pansies and snapdragons that had spontaneously sprouted around the garden had to be corralled into their respective areas, and the snails had to be dealt with. All this I did, and as I uprooted, transplanted, weeded and watered, I couldn't help noticing the smile on my face and how good and energetic I felt in spite of the fact that I hadn't slept nearly enough. At last I stepped back to survey what I had done and I stood in awe. The weedy, open areas of dirt, the dense clumps of marigolds and haphazard patches of pansies were gone. In their places stood orderly rows of flowers and soil free of weeds. It was as if in the process of putting the garden to rights, it had undergone a metamorphosis. It looked better, to be sure, but it was more than that. It FELT better. It felt RIGHT. It was as if everything was finally where it was supposed to be and this created an energetic shift. I looked at my garden as if I was seeing it for the very first time, not unlike the way a father looks at his daughter when she is ready to leave for her prom, with pride, awe and wonder at the beauty of it all. It was a case of the whole being more than just the sum of its parts.

Just as I patted the last plant into place, as if on cue, the first drops of the impending rain began to fall lightly. As I gathered my garden tools to put them away, I remembered the lesson the garden taught me last week..."redistribute your assets and spread the wealth for you already have everything you need". Yes, once again She was correct. Everything I needed to beautify my garden had already been provided for me. All I had to do was put it in its proper place.

Ballo ergo sum
- Gitana, the Creative Diva