Cooperative Living November/December 2022 - 25

GARDENMUSE
Spiritof the Season
by Paula Steers Brown, Contributing Columnist
Some reflections from our longtime Garden Muse
T
he season ofgratitude is upon us. I want to thank
you readers for stopping by this column to get my
musings on the garden for the last 21 years. In this,
my last article, I think back fondly on how plants have
helped cultivate friendships and well-being.
From afternoon teas sipped amid the perfume ofDaphne
odora to nocturnal gatherings
with dear friends that glow white
with the once-a-year bloom of
Queen ofthe Night cactus flower,
I have shared in words and
pictures the drama ofthe garden.
As the harvest season caps
the year, we gather all manner
ofbotanicals for bountiful
arrangements from garden to
table. When the parties move
inside, the garden seems ready
for its longwinter's nap, but the
coming quiet time is one ofits
best, a time for the spirit.
THE VALLEY CATHEDRAL
A favorite ofmy garden visits
as a columnist that made the
power ofnature ring true was to
Buffalo Springs Herb Farm in
tiny Raphine, Va., a destination
for herb lovers, craftspeople and
Christmas junkies.
Co-owners DonHaynie
and TomHamlin painstakingly
restored an 1890 Shenandoah
Valley Bank Barn, a storehouse
for colorful bunches ofeverlastings drying on tier poles,
where pungent cedars and holiday lights soared upward
to hand-hewn rafters. " It's a cathedral, " musedHaynie of
the space's inspiring quality, where classes on floral design
produced wondrous works.
Outside, a stone backdrop with statues ofsaints filling
A labyrinth walk offers a contemplative path in a
calm, natural setting to promote well-being.
Paula Steers Brown
CHIMES FOR A QUEEN
This open-air " abbey " came to mind during the recent
observances and tributes to the life ofQueen Elizabeth II.
Introducing the sensory element ofsound, Gregorian chants
were piped in to enhance meditation from a simple bench
or on a contemplative walk.
Wind chimes, like those at
The meditative Abbey Garden at Buffalo Springs Herb
Farm provides a comforting outdoor sanctuary.
Buffalo Creek, bringmore
evocative sounds into a garden
space. I have recently
appreciated wind chimes given
upon the death ofa loved one,
where their soft sounds conjured
by the wind stirring seem
appropriately transportive,
putting us in a nostalgic mind
ofa spirit moving among us,
comforting us in a sanctuary
oftranquility.
Exploringmeditative
pathways proves to be an
effective way to create " sacred
space. " One such style is the
labyrinth garden, an ancient
form, which uses the kinesthetic
experience ofsimply walking a
path as a mode ofexercise to
engage our senses, connecting
the mind and body. A
contemplative path with no
wrong turns is reassuring.
The cyclic quality of
nature and its promise of
rebirth is similarly reassuring
and quite appropriate for the holiday season. Perennial
plants' regeneration is a most valuable feature, as they grow
fuller every year, making more to share with friends. Plants
reconnect us with history, even as they reach toward
the future.
The older I get, the more I am fascinated with the model
niches softened by evergreen shrubs and herbs, features
rosemary, a plant long associated with the VirginMary.
Stone troughs beautifully display some ofthe herbs of
Advent: bedstraw (the manger herb), boxwood, horehound,
juniper, pennyroyal, rue, sage and thyme.
co-opliving.com
nature provides offaith, faith that a pattern for the tallest
tree or the most intricate bloom is recorded in its seed.
That inspiration is a constant miracle, one I have loved
sharing. Thanks for joining me for 21 years on such
a miraculous journey. 
November-December 2022 ● Cooperative Living ●
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Cooperative Living November/December 2022

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