We put the garden to rest a few months ago now. Even though this was a bit of a rough year for gardening with Eli (he resisted going and whined a lot while there), he was sad to put the garden to rest. He made a great stone creation out of all the rocks and flagstone we pulled out of the pathways and enjoyed spreading the leaves and straw. Every now and then we walk our dog by the plot, just to see it resting, buried in snow and straw, bits of rich black soil poking through, waiting for spring. Maybe this is why I love gardening the most: there is so much hope and wonder in that soil, in what it might be, in what it can produce.
This year I decided to celebrate the 12 Holy Nights. This represents the time when the 3 Kings were traveling to see the Child of Light. This is not a tradition I was raised with, but all of the Festivals of Light so resonate with Eli, and his need to cope with the darkness, that it feels right to bring them into our home. Each day Eli opens a small gift that is something small for the home and family. It has helped to diffuse the "let-down" after all the excitement of the holiday season. (Some families rotate, so everyone gets a turn opening something, too.) Yesterday he found a narcissus bulb waiting for him. Eli has always loved bulbs. Maybe it is something symbolic in laying a bulb in the ground and letting it rest through the long cold winter nights. Maybe it is the cheerfulness of the first spring flowers. At any rate, I didn't anticipate that he would be so excited to receive a bulb. It didn't have all the flash of Legos or even the little Ganesh things he received earlier in the week. But he was pleasantly pleased. After school, I set out a cookie sheet with a pot, the bulb, a bucket of soil, a spoon, and a small pitcher of water. He spooned soil over the bulb, very gently patting it down, then watered it and placed the pot in the window. The green shoots are poking out of the bulb, so we should be able to watch it grow soon. It's a great mid-winter way to connect to life!
We put the garden to rest a few months ago now. Even though this was a bit of a rough year for gardening with Eli (he resisted going and whined a lot while there), he was sad to put the garden to rest. He made a great stone creation out of all the rocks and flagstone we pulled out of the pathways and enjoyed spreading the leaves and straw. Every now and then we walk our dog by the plot, just to see it resting, buried in snow and straw, bits of rich black soil poking through, waiting for spring. Maybe this is why I love gardening the most: there is so much hope and wonder in that soil, in what it might be, in what it can produce.
Hi my name is Paul Treacy. I'm the Abstract Neo-Symbolist Painter who's watercolor painting is in your article. Checkout www.paultreacy.net if you would like to see more of my work.
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