Planting
Planting…love?
I have been planting all over the property in Ocean View.
It is a very difficult environment. There is no earth so we have to make our own by hand: organic chicken manure with crushed black cinder and macadamia nut husks. There is no water so we have to pay for it and have it hauled in. There are regular gale force winds pounding anything living to death or at the very least working on dehydrating the little moisture left in the earth after days of beating midday sun.
I am not known for choosing easy tasks.
I once had a five page article written about my gardens in Bali at Sacred River Retreat in Australian House and Garden Magazine. That place was originally a disused quarry. I had to return all the earth before I began to plant.
Why do I love to green the difficult parts of the earth…because to green the earth is to bring back love to the places that have been abandoned. To take care of living things is to claim an important role in the web of life and feeds our sense of self worth.
Everything I plant here, every stone I move, all the seeds I bury are symbolic to me. Anything that can withstand the elements and prosper here is symbolic of an individual that survives the challenges of their life. There are people living and succeeding under difficult conditions all over the world who will one day come to benefit from our work here.
The place is looking more beautiful every day. The Divine Mother is smiling upon us and the Earth Devas have been awakened. I have orchids blooming in the wind and incredible miracles occurring in every corner of the yard. Recently the stralitsias, the ‘birds of paradise’, have flowered, providing an incredible slash of orange against the black of the lava. The gardenias are in bud and the blood red geraniums are taking off.
At the front facing the gate, I have planted an island with four coconut palms and a sea of colored succulents that become magenta pink in the full sun. Behind that, I have built an island under an old Ohia Tree with an altar to the Divine Mother of All Creation in a bird bath, since the water constantly evaporated.
Below the tree, I have a large stone statue of Ganesha, lounging in the sun. He has a flurry of green flowering plants and a dragon fruit cactus behind him with wild flashing red blooms to celebrate his pleasure. Ganesha represents jovial abundance, compassion and the remover of obstacles. Who wouldn’t want him and what he represents at their gate?
Around the bird bath platform of The Divine Mother, I have created a mandala garden, using hearts and flowers, creepers, pink cactus like desert lotus blossoms and macadamia nut husks. The accents are in red and green cinder lava. It has a final row of white ghost plants that shine in the dark and make it clear where the bed is at night so no one walks into it by mistake.
Do you love the earth? If you put your hands in soil, do you know what happens? You connect to your organic source, relax your mind and extend your life. You become a part of the healing process of the earth and heal yourself in the process. What a gift the earth is!
