I worked in my garden today and realized I wasn’t finished with my previous blog, Weeds and Roots (http://fortylives.com/2013/05/12/weeds-and-roots/). My wildflower garden has gotten a little too wild these days – a victim of neglect by its gardener. Last week, I focused my attention on pulling the most obtrusive weeds and pruning overgrown plants. Today was about borders and pebble pathways.
The garden is framed by stones, various sizes and shapes, and not at all uniform. I like the rustic look of the rocks as it fits with the random nature of the wildflowers. In bloom now are irises, roses, peonies, and coreopsis. Lilies are soon to follow. But weeds have grown up, not only around these flowers, but around the stones and in the path as well. It will take much time and effort to clear them all. So I decided to focus on the borders on this spring day.
I dug out all the stones, one by one, and piled them up. Then I removed grass and weeds from the border, finally replacing the stones in the clean perimeter. The garden path of small pebbles was also cleared of unwanted growth. And now – though the plants still call for much more attention – there is a clear walkway and defined boundaries.
And again my life parallels this place. I’m opening more and more to the weeding and pruning required for strengthening roots, for growth. And now I guess I need my boundaries reinforced. Rather than restricting freedom, a definite path and sure border can actually make the journey liberating in itself. Trusting the Gardener doesn’t have to be frightening. He knows, after all, where the pebble walkway leads.
I finished my efforts today with my 5 year old planting sunflower seeds. We don’t have to wait for all the overgrowth to be removed to encourage new flowers. The soil has been turned enough lately to provide nurturing ground. And just like the spring offers beauty following the frost, this garden is filled with new hope.