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People I know and hold dear and
the stories are quite real. The garden is life, the gardener
is the Creator - by whatever name you know Him or her, the
angel is the silver web that connects us all, and the focus
of each tale is actually a very real person. In the first
tale I introduced the plant, a dear friend who I count as
not only a very dear friend but in so many ways a guide and
mentor. In this, the second tale, I introduce someone I came
to find to be a friend I could turn to for an ear to listen,
to help me figure things out, to just be there, and someone
I have lost but will never forget.
The garden was again
flourishing, again a lovely tranquil place. The angel walked
through smiling. One day, she thought to herself, she would
learn to trust that the gardener knew what he was doing -
yet for some reason she still seemed to feel the need to
question every reason, every choice the gardener made. In
her heart she could see - she would always question, and the
gardener would always be right. As she wandered drinking in
the perfection of the garden her mind wandered back to the
large tree that had once stood here, to when it had been
moved.
The angel had entered the garden - looking for the gardener
- a look of deep concern on her face. She glanced about the
garden as she sought him. Yes, the others had cried out
truthfully. The tree had been the central focus of the
garden - three generations had since sprung up under its
steady strength and protection. Tall and steady, its deep
roots had held the very earth together, and it's wide
spreading branches and offered shelter and shade to the
seedlings that had sprung from its line. And even more
depended upon the tree, the smaller creatures that sheltered
in the welcoming branches, the larger creatures that took
shelter in its shade, and the many other plants growing near
or in its shade.
Now the tree was gone, where it
had stood a cavernous hole in the very earth. And so many
plants and others disturbed - displaced.
Finally she found the gardener - he looked weary, a deep
sadness seemed to wrap around him. "How could you?" the
angel demanded. "The tree was strong and vibrant - now that
part of the garden is devastated." He smiled at the angel.
"Yes, it is a magnificent tree, and I could have trimmed out
the few branches that were weaker or broken. But it was time
- I eventually move all my plantings to the grand garden,
and the place for the tree was ready." The gardener looked
off wearily into the distance. "I know there is much now I
need to tend, damage in the garden that I need to fix. It
will take time and patience - but the garden will again
flourish."
"I recall when I planted that tree - just a sapling, yet
already tall and steady and full of promise." The gardener
smiled a distant smile as his mind wandered back remembering
the tall thin sapling. "I have seen much of the tree in the
saplings that continue its line. They will one day allow the
garden to continue to expand."
"And what of the others? Those that are now displaced? The
smaller creatures that lived in the spreading branches no
longer have a home and the larger creatures that sheltered
in its shade are without." Silver tears were now flowing
freely down the angel's delicate face as she thought of the
creatures that had for so long looked to the tree for
shelter. And too, the tree had stood as a guide for many -
so tall and steady, it was for many a reference point in the
garden. "What of the other plantings that depended on the
shade of the tree to protect them from the sun?" She thought
of that part of the garden and how devastated it had seemed
when she had passed it looking for the gardener.
Slowly the gardener turned to face the angel. And only then
did she see that he was crying also. "I will tend to them
all. The smaller creatures will spread from the tree to the
next generation in its line just as they spread to the tree
when I removed the tree from before it. The other plantings
will find shade and shelter from the newer trees. And the
larger creatures will find that the younger trees also offer
shelter." He looked into the angel's eyes and she knew all
would be alright.
"Would you like to see where I have moved the tree to? I
have a few moments, we can see how things are going." He
smiled gently. When she nodded he gently took her hand and
led her to a different garden. As her eyes opened wide in
amazement his heart lightened. "This is why I moved the
tree", he explained. All the angel could do was nod in
stunned amazement.
The gardener had led her into a valley, more lovely than any
she had ever seen. All manner of plants seemed to flourish
here. At the far end of the valley was a magnificent
waterfall providing water to the entire valley. And wrapped
across the sky was the most beautiful, perfect rainbow. As
she drank it all in the gardener smiled. "The rainbow is
always there", he explained. "Here my garden is perfect."
The angel finally spotted the tree - and was amazed, it had
only just been moved yet it was ever more magnificent than
it had ever been. As she looked closer she realized all of
the weak and broken branches were again vibrant and whole.
Again the gardener smiled at her. Silver tears again flowed
down her delicate cheeks - only these were tears of joy.
"Come", he said quietly, "there is much to be repaired in
the garden."
?© 2005 Rhonda
Carter
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