IN THE GARDEN, 15 OCTOBER 2019
The palm tree that thrives best in this part of Alabama is "Windmill Palm." These are on the south side of my little retirement house. The larger one is about full grown at nearly twenty feet. There are several of these in my garden to give it a tropical feel. The shrub is gardenia.
A garden serves to remind us that whatever is happening in our lives, creation goes on, and does so wonderfully and beautifully, even without our attention or interference because it comes from a force infinitely greater than ourselves. Let's take that thought with us as we enter the eighth year of the schism in South Carolina.
At noon today, I did go out into my garden to spend awhile in quiet and prayerful meditation in remembrance of the seventh anniversary of the schism in South Carolina. I hope you too found a moment at mid-day to pray and reflect on the events of the past seven years.
It is a cool and overcast day here in eastern Alabama, and threatening rain. The cool and the rain are most welcome as relief from a long, hot summer and a drought. Even though I have mostly neglected my garden in the past few weeks, I found beauty all around me and it buoyed my somber spirit greatly.
Since you could not be with me in my garden today, I thought I would walk you around it.
This bench is my favorite place to sit in the garden. From a slight rise, I can see most of the garden. I sat there a long time at noon today reading my prayers and Bible verses as the birds sang, butterflies fluttered and a sweet aroma filled the air. I soon discovered the tea olive shrub was in full bloom a few yards away. I think this is the nearest to heaven I will reach on earth. And of all days, I needed it the most today.
I walked around to get solace from ever present St. Francis, everybody's favorite medieval lover of nature. He is about to be enveloped by this Fall blooming camellia.
It is unusual to see a banana tree bearing fruit in this part of the South because frost always kills the tree to the ground, but here it is. Unfortunately these little bananas will not mature as we are likely to have frost within a month.
This akebia vine has more than devoured its trellis. It is flourishing but some plants are not as the drought has caused many to shed their leaves.
On the walkpath in the smaller part of the garden looking toward the central lawn.
The last rose of summer. "Coral Drift," a shrub rose, will bloom until frost.
A garden serves to remind us that whatever is happening in our lives, creation goes on, and does so wonderfully and beautifully, even without our attention or interference because it comes from a force infinitely greater than ourselves. Let's take that thought with us as we enter the eighth year of the schism in South Carolina.
