10072011

The eighth wonder of the world and the wonder of gardening.

A dear friend of mine called me a gardener rather than a builder in reference to what Paulo Coelho said about different people. According to Coelho, there are two types: builders and gardeners. Builders are those people who have a humongous project of building a life. They have set their minds into accomplishing this project and put all of their efforts into building the house of their life. But no building project lasts for ever. Once the house has been built, there is nothing left for them. Only four walls to be collapsed over their heads.

Gardeners also have a project of life. But theirs lasts as long as they last. A garden needs constant attention. Times change and gardens have to face storms and dry seasons. Yet, the gardener is focused on getting the garden to flourish. A life of a gardener is an adventure and every day is different.

Gardens are not made by sitting in the shade.
-Rudyard Kipling

There are, indeed, two types of people. And because my way with words isn't as brilliant as Coelho's, I call these two groups of people the donters and the doers. The donters sit in the shade and watch their garden from a distance. They have all these dreams of getting things done, accomplishing, enjoying, experiencing but they decide to sit in the shade nonetheless. They don't do anything.

The doers are there in the garden. They are wearing gardening gloves that have small flowers on them while picking up the work over and over again. They are giving water to every plant (every dream?) in the garden and they are fulfilling their lives. Their gardens are filled with beautiful flowers, green weeds and fruits of life that are made of smiles, hopes and dreams. They do all they can because it makes their life worth living for.

The Milford Sound is in New Zealand and Rudyard Kipling called it the eight wonder of the world in reference to the ancient seven wonders of the world. Four months from now it will be spring in New Zealand and I will stand on the same lake shore as the person who took the above photograph. I will breathe the fresh air and take a photograph of mine. And this photograph, I will add to the garden of my life for my life is a wonder of  the world. I refuse to sit in the shade - my garden awaits.

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