For me the metaphor of a garden is a powerful attraction. I have said that my physical garden -- my yard -- is not necessarily groomed well. At the same time it does represent me -- the side of me that is a little untamed, spontaneous, sprouting ideas that don't seem to fit.
When I walk past the gardens of my neighbors, I see all those same differences in their gardens. Some neat and well maintained, others a bit unkempt but interesting none the less. Some people plant wild flowers and let them grow in their own way. Others plant neat rows of hostas. All of these gardens say something about their gardeners -- about the values they possess and carry on.
When I lived in Indonesia, I studied art and culture of Bali. It struck me that in Balinese art no space is left untouched in a canvas. It is busy with images that reflect the realities of life in Bali. There is lush vegetation everywhere and people are always out and seen on the streets and in the villages. Their gardens are rice fields, forests, and orchids that bloom. In the front of their houses, offerings are made daily to the gods.
At the last meeting, I couldn’t stop thinking about our metaphor – our physical gardens, our spiritual gardens. What do those gardens look like? What do they represent about us, about our values and beliefs. We often talk about the necessity of weeding, but some gardens weeds are another gardens flowers. It seems like such a huge subject in a simple disguise.
In the above quote by Basho, the chestnut represents that which is holy in Japanese literature – so, I thought perhaps that is it. Often what we value is around us and beautiful, but we fail to notice its presence in our lives. As each of us has a different garden, with vastly different plants – so too are the differences in our values and beliefs – our spiritual path.
These are my thoughts. I hope the phone council meeting on the 22nd of June is a good one. I definitely am looking forward to the conversation that evolves.
