<p>‘As I work in the garden, the garden works on me’</p>.<p class="bodytext">I recently read this quote and realized that tending to plants and just watching them grow has been an integral part of my life. I probably picked up this habit from my maternal aunt and uncle who lived next door during my formative years. It has been my long-cherished wish to stay in a house surrounded by mother nature and destiny made this possible when my husband got transferred to a place which had a housing community atop a picturesque hillock. Fortunately, we were allotted a ground floor house with a verdant garden facing our drawing room. Though it was a corner house with a huge wall separating the adjacent sector, our garden was the cynosure of all eyes. </p>.<p class="bodytext">A massive jackfruit tree provided enough yield for the entire neighborhood, while the breeze from the neem tree purified the air and it’s fallen leaves acted as a natural repellant for pests. At the far end of our compound, Custard apple and guava trees made their presence felt by adorning themselves with fruits, almost throughout the year. These giving trees adapted to the vagaries of nature quite efficiently. Be it torrential rains or scorching heat, it was remarkable to see them robustly rooted to terra firma, in a way gently schooling us to stay strong despite life’s ups and downs! </p>.Trees and their keepers.<p class="bodytext">Soon, our stay in this house came to an end as the building was scheduled for special repairs. When we were allotted a house in the adjacent compound, I fervently prayed for a house with a green patch. The power of prayer was experienced in full glory when we moved into this new house with a sprawling garden and fruit trees and floras encasing it. Blessing the hands that tended to this fertile plot, I happily immersed myself in this green lap of luxury. </p>.<p class="bodytext">Now, gardening has become a meditative process that teaches me the fine art of patience, mindfulness and appreciation for small things in life. “Unknowingly we smile just looking at this flowering plants and trees full of fruits”, my house help Vijaya commented one day. Her profound statement has stuck with me filling my heart with delight and gratitude. This quote by David Hobson aptly sums my state of mind, “I grow plants for many reasons: to please my soul, to challenge the elements or to challenge my patience, for novelty, or for nostalgia, but mostly for the joy in seeing them grow."</p>
<p>‘As I work in the garden, the garden works on me’</p>.<p class="bodytext">I recently read this quote and realized that tending to plants and just watching them grow has been an integral part of my life. I probably picked up this habit from my maternal aunt and uncle who lived next door during my formative years. It has been my long-cherished wish to stay in a house surrounded by mother nature and destiny made this possible when my husband got transferred to a place which had a housing community atop a picturesque hillock. Fortunately, we were allotted a ground floor house with a verdant garden facing our drawing room. Though it was a corner house with a huge wall separating the adjacent sector, our garden was the cynosure of all eyes. </p>.<p class="bodytext">A massive jackfruit tree provided enough yield for the entire neighborhood, while the breeze from the neem tree purified the air and it’s fallen leaves acted as a natural repellant for pests. At the far end of our compound, Custard apple and guava trees made their presence felt by adorning themselves with fruits, almost throughout the year. These giving trees adapted to the vagaries of nature quite efficiently. Be it torrential rains or scorching heat, it was remarkable to see them robustly rooted to terra firma, in a way gently schooling us to stay strong despite life’s ups and downs! </p>.Trees and their keepers.<p class="bodytext">Soon, our stay in this house came to an end as the building was scheduled for special repairs. When we were allotted a house in the adjacent compound, I fervently prayed for a house with a green patch. The power of prayer was experienced in full glory when we moved into this new house with a sprawling garden and fruit trees and floras encasing it. Blessing the hands that tended to this fertile plot, I happily immersed myself in this green lap of luxury. </p>.<p class="bodytext">Now, gardening has become a meditative process that teaches me the fine art of patience, mindfulness and appreciation for small things in life. “Unknowingly we smile just looking at this flowering plants and trees full of fruits”, my house help Vijaya commented one day. Her profound statement has stuck with me filling my heart with delight and gratitude. This quote by David Hobson aptly sums my state of mind, “I grow plants for many reasons: to please my soul, to challenge the elements or to challenge my patience, for novelty, or for nostalgia, but mostly for the joy in seeing them grow."</p>
