The highest reward for a person's toil is not what they get for it, but
what they become by it.
- John Ruskin
- John Ruskin
In my lifetime, I have planted many gardens; some filled with flowers, fruits, other flora and the occasional fauna. Other gardens were metaphorical in nature. Here’s the thing about gardens, for me at least – when I plant one I never know if I will be around to enjoy the fruits of my labor. Quite often and particularly with gardens of the metaphorical variety, I am not around when they come into their glory. In this, the point of a garden is not the end result, rather the process. It is the realizations which come as I sink a shovel into the rich soil cultivated over the years by improving it with fallen leaves, compost, and other natural fertilizers which enrich the hard Georgia clay. It is the process of having seen the brick hard red turn to fertile brown over the years, each soil amendment adding its own contribution. It is the knowledge that every seed, plant, and transplant is an act of faith which may come into bloom…or not. It is the belief that for all my attempts to control how and where plants flourish; the garden will take the form it is meant to in the end. Wild, unruly, and, largely, uncontrollable ~ this is my garden and I love it.
Such is my life as well, for as much as I would like to believe I was in charge, I simply cannot control events or outcomes. The control freak in me detests this reality, but the part of me that strives to surrender to Life’s will appreciates that my garden is a constant reminder of just how little control I have. I am thankful for the gentle nudging my garden provides to let go and let life take the form it is intended to take. I am grateful for the comings and goings of those who have influenced my world and from whom I learned valuable lessons, both painful and glorious. I am far better for having planted these many gardens for in my garden as in my life, it is never about ‘what I get’ rather ‘who I become’ in the process of my toils. ~ Mk Michaels
