There is a special worth that comes in knowing

that you are meant to be treated gently, kindly, softly, and with care.

But, while most people in a town may inhabit a house with a yard

and that yard may have a garden

there is no guarantee that the garden will be tended.

 

There are those who take the time out of their day to check that everything is growing 

and properly cared for.

There are those who spend two hours a day in their garden, 

working in the soil.

They have learned about their task, and they take pleasure and confidence in their work

They feel a sense of peace in watching the garden grow, in finding the strange 

and often fussy characteristics it expresses. The irises that don’t like too much water,

the poppies that start out looking like weeds,

the roses that--no matter the coaxing--will not grow as you thought they would.

As you were told they should. 

And then there are those that keep their gardens manicured, 

and pay others to tend them regularly

which doesn’t necessarily break my metaphor,

but certainly complicates it.

 

But as we explore the tending of gardens further, we know where this will lead.

We have driven these city streets, we have lived in these neighborhoods.

We’ve watched the people around us.

We know how these gardens are treated.