In
the Garden
“The
dance of renewal, the dance that made the world, was always danced here at the
edge of things, on the brink, on the foggy coast.”
Ursula
K. Le Guin
Sitting
in the courtyard at Sharon and Harry’s house, with the sun shining through
maple leaves and birds bathing in the fountain, feels like being in the light
of the first garden. The Garden of Eden, in its original form, was a paradise
of harmony and peace—or so we are told. We came from that place in the most
literal sense according to Genesis—we were formed from the earth. And we have
been trying unsuccessfully to return there ever since.
As
Harry and I were discussing this yesterday, it occurred to me that we abandoned
the Garden—through wars and plagues and greed, and destruction of every sort. But
within, we hunger for the love and creativity and peacefulness it represents. We
lost our way. We got turned around and lost sight of what we already had. We mistook
our own power for the creative power of God. We thought we could build
buildings, and roads, and bridges, and construct palaces and mansions that were
even better than the garden. We could create our own version of paradise and
all we needed was enough money and influence to make it happen. Then we decided that someone else already had what we wanted and that we would need to
get rid of them to have it for ourselves. Before long, we were focused, not on returning
to Garden, but on competing for the biggest and most ostentations paradise of
our own making.
When
people sit in the sunlight in the Garden, they think peaceful thoughts and feel
grateful for everything they have and everything they are. When they sit in the
tower of human pride, they feel anger and resentment and jealousy. We can
return to the garden, but we have to let go of the illusion that it comes from
our own hands and belongs to us. We must accept that everything we have, and
everything we see, is a gift given by Love to afford us the experience of light
and peace for a little while. It does not belong to us, or anyone else.
There
are no substitutes for the Garden. We can’t make it, or buy it, or steal it. We
can only receive this gift in the spirit it is given, and share it with the
rest of creation. And give thanks.
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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