Gardening Leave

For as long as I can remember ‘Gardening Leave’ was a term used to describe the state of Limbo that surrounds an employee who’s been sacked on full pay while he / she awaits a review or formal settlement. It was usually accompanied by the immediate appointment of a successor – ‘The King is dead; long live the King!’ There’s often a mild embarrassment about the former employee who fell from favour and was excluded. Except in the case of a ‘public hanging’, speculation about the circumstances is discouraged; the business just wants to carry on with minimal disruption. Only recently have I started to imagine the benefits of this situation. Over the last two years I’ve volunteered at our local community garden. Now in April everything is coming alive as spring awakens hundreds of seeds and ‘weeds in wheels shoot long, lovely and lush.’ On arrival at the garden my everyday situation is suspended for a few hours while the work takes over. Wet or dry, inside or out, there are a thousand things to do. There is true nourishment here in the moment. Mentally I’m fully absorbed and Spiritually I can contemplate the perfection of nature and seek to work with it. Our harvest is a few months away. There’s a promise and a trust of physical nourishment in due course. To the displaced executive, or the jilted lover, there’s a non-judgemental, peaceful haven where she can gently come to terms with her new reality and recover. In time she may be able to extract some useful learning and awaken to new possibilities. Spiritual healing is as real as physical healing. When we create the right environment the body heals itself; so also does the soul. In the vast majority of cases medication is unnecessary. Mental anguish and emotional wounding heal naturally when we’ve cultivated a strong community to support us in our times of trial. This is our spiritual immune system; and just like the physical immune system we can take action to strengthen it. As we work together and eat together in the garden, so we grow together. We become conscious of the miracle of life that surrounds us. In our life outside the garden we must similarly invest in the family, friendships and relationships and become conscious of the miracle of Oneness that unites us. Today ‘Gardening Leave’ has a totally different meaning for me. Rather than a shameful fall from favour and exclusion, or an emotional battering from bereavement, this is a time for reflection and spiritual healing. Just as localised inflammation is an essential part of our physical immune system, our work in the garden provides a mental engagement to momentarily distract us from the spiritual wounding that we’ve suffered. The Irish wake system is a wonderful example of emotional inflammation in action. As news of a death spreads through the community, friends arrive from near and far to be with the family. The family in turn, busy with hosting duties, are shielded, if only briefly, from the impact of their loss. In the Christian tradition, as Lent draws to a close, we look forward to abundant new life. The darkest days are swept away by the promise of new beginnings. But as every gardener knows, each season brings its own challenges and the work is never done. So let us draw from the Light of Easter, the nourishment we need for our spiritual journey. And through our daily practice of prayer and meditation may we tend to the strengthening of our spiritual immune system. Gardening Leave was never so good.