As a book shelf was reorganized today, I found one of my journals from 2012. Some early morning notes caught my attention, it was a reflection on a garden book written by Julie Moir Messervy titled "The Inward Garden". Julie's premise for the book is defining distinct garden styles and matching them to an individuals ultimate desire for their own garden space. She believes that the first six years of one's life determines the visions or "images of paradise" that form your frame of reference.
For Julie, her curiosity on the topic began as she watched her children explore their own space. She feels that as we grow and explore, we experience places that remind us of early feelings. It may be the small picture, some attention to detail, stones in a shallow pond or the black petals on a black tulip (one of my first memories), versus larger things like high waterfalls, or large sweeps of spring bulbs. As far back as comfort in the womb to an embrace from a parent, learning to walk, safe exploration that begins your first foray away from your parents, these are what form our comfort in the context of space around us.
In defining these archetypes, Julie identifies seven: the sea, the cave, the harbor, the promontory, the island, the mountain, and the sky. My own journal notes listed these and experiences I could remember that most reminded me of each archetype. These were notes based on memory as a teenager and young adult, but I'm certain that even these memories are based on some link to those years before we really remember these kinds of details, that is why they are remembered.
The entire topic is fascinating and my own notes went on to ask if the garden is about fantasy or about the plants? A quote by Aristotle finished my notes: "The soul never thinks without a mental picture". I am sure that every gardener feels some degree of fantasy. It's difficult to garden without imagining results. We are forward thinkers. But what really makes you stop and feel happiness? Even if it's only a photograph of a landscape scene, or the architecture of a home? I'm talking about the overwhelming sense of place and comfort. This may be, or should be the foundation of your garden.
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