the sacred garden

The year 2013 is ending – the 100^th anniversary year of Kirstenbosch Gardens in Cape Town. Ever since my dad first brought the family here when we arrived in South Africa in 1970, I have loved this Garden. And this year, it has been the place I have visited most when looking for somewhere to spend solo time in nature each week. Kirstenbosch feels to me like holy ground – a place of inspiration, wisdom and healing.

In the fertile lap
Of towering buttresses
Beneath the watchful Castle Rock
Lies the sacred garden.

 For one hundred years
Nature and human hands
Have conspired to conjure magic
From the material.

Through the mysterious
Rite of soul engaging soil
Generations of gardeners
Have sanctified this space.

 Awed by magnificence
Touched by simplicity
The blessing of Kirstenbosch
Is to open our hearts.

 Care evokes beauty
The spirit of the place
She enters through our senses
Inspires us with her grace.