Garden Update

May, 2026

May 21, 2026

A Year with the Contemplative Pilgrim 2026

It has been a few weeks since I have given a garden update so today is the day.

I have been away on a short retreat and it is always good to come home to view the growth in the garden. This year I started seed in poor soil and so I thought that the plants may not survive. In fact many of the flower seeds did not make it and most of the peppers. However, the tomato seeds did survive and have really taken off.

I have written many times of how the garden is a metaphor for a Camino for me. I have a planning stage, a beginning stage, a long-lasting middle stage and finally a harvest, a homecoming where dreams are realized.

The garden is also a place for contemplation. I get to spend quiet time doing the maintenance and also quietly observing the progress taking place. I often become attached to certain plants and watching them develop becomes personal.

In my mind’s eye I can see God looking at me, at us, in the same fashion as I observe the garden. Just as I take care to provide what the plants may need, God is looking out for me, checking to see if everything is working out the way that he planned. I can trust this and the very thought of God watching our for me gives me peace.

I know that as the harvest arrives I can rejoice and God does the same as fruit is developed simply by staying connected to the source. Finally, life’s season is over and we get to move on to the next stage. For the plants it is seed saving or becoming compost for next years garden. For Christians it is heaven, whatever that may entail. Either way I can rely on the hand of God to be at work and all I need do is rest and trust in him, the Heavenly Gardener!

Until next time,