A Whimsical Dictionary: G is for Garden

A Whimsical Dictionary of Surprising Influences.

G is for Garden –

A place of cultivated beauty; an unlikely site to have such a pivotal history; a place set apart for the two extremes of life: growth and death. Gardens contain vegetation, flowerage, and other aspects of creation in process; gardens also contain tombs, burial grounds, and other aspects of mortality. Though veiled in an aura of innocent calm and serenity, gardens seem to have the potential for the highest joy or the deepest despair. A garden then, provided the backdrop for the three most decisive Acts in the drama of history.

Act One, in Eden: the first Adam is center stage, and while in that garden, chose to be “like a god” by eating fruit from the forbidden tree. Mankind has been reeling since.

Act Two, in Gethsemane: the opened curtain revealed the second Adam. Again in a garden, He is faced with a strikingly similar choice, obedience vs. disobedience. Instead of asking Himself “Should I eat this fruit?” in His agony, He cried “Let this cup pass by me, Father.” But it’s the same thing. This protagonist finally opted for the only tree, on a nearby hill, that could shake the effects of the tree in Act One. And we had best thank the lucky stars, and everything else in heaven, that He did. As you can see, the first mistake was eating the comely fruit, the second mistake would have been refusing a bitter fruit, both fruits being in some mysterious way slices of death.

But let’s not forget Act Three, which occurred just a few days after Act Two. This third garden contained a spanking new tomb, Joseph of Arimathea’s, which in turn contained a laser-white angel, who said in no uncertain terms, “Don’t look for the second Adam here, folks; He’s gone!” And this Act closes with an unforgettable scene: the risen Adam is mistaken for a gardener! Isn’t that just like our unpredictable and ironic playwright?