There’s nothing like transformation—book and movie plots rely on it; if a character

doesn’t change there’s no “plot.” I love TV shows and magazine articles showing “before” and “after” scenes of people, houses and my current favourite—gardens. Transformations give us hope that things don’t have to stay a mess; why leave things that way when they can be made better?

Charlie and “the boys” on British TV’s Garden Rescue have encouraged and inspired me to do something with our back garden consisting of a long strip of grass on one side and gravel down the other.  “Patios” top either end with a footpath down the middle. It was the proverbial “empty canvas” except for the massive pampas grass that I’ve always said I’d never have, and countless little abandoned toys and bits of plastic and netting left by previous tenants. Since we’re renting and on a visa, I didn’t want to invest a lot of money but I wanted beauty.

The estate agents and the landlord gave me permission to dig up the grass for a vegetable garden but with hesitation.  “I guess the grass would grow back,” the landlord surmised. Most definitely.  Though I ordered a shiny new shovel delivered, in the end, I decided that pots would be enough since my back didn’t like the idea of digging.

Last year I ordered and filled some plastic pots with compost, flowers and vegetables, arranging them on the gravel, as best I could–they were heavy, in a sort of river flow.  This year, I brought in more pots, compost and plants, refining the path.

The hardscaping of the Garden Rescuers’ designs inspired me to consider some flat stones to make a proper path.  In my last garden—in the US, I had discovered enough flat stones around the property to lay a path.  My husband and I had bought and filled the car boot with extra stones from a local farmers market. Since we don’t have a car in England, we couldn’t haul any in but I wondered if there might be stones here in the garden?  Yes.  They were buried in the dirt or overgrown with ivy; it felt like a treasure hunt.  Were there more?  I needed a few more.  Yes, just enough.  I unearthed the stones and dragged them one by one to the gravel, pushing gravel aside to nestle each one in.  I couldn’t dig beds for them since the gravel has a liner but for the most part they stay in place.

I hear a lot these days about how garden paths require a person to slow down and enjoy the garden.  I walk the cement path when I’m in a hurry but take every opportunity to meander down my stone path.

Thankfully, the old three-sided shed that looked like an old time American latrine (all it needed to complete the look was a crescent cut in the door) has been torn down and removed, opening up new space.

 

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.  Romans 12:2