beneficiaries as well as victims of medical wizardry?
And where is the exit strategy once we embark on the machines
that breath and maintain blood pressure artificially?
Something needed to be done at this point
out of the mechanics and physics of the inescapable decline.
Something meta-physical
So off I went with my trusted pal Allan
since I had no clue as to what I was doing
merely that I would create
a perfumed garden on my deck
so that when he would be brought home
he might enjoy the beauty and privacy of the deck
enclosed in green.
Buying the pots and earth and chemicals
the hose and sphpritzer the small garden tools
Reminded me of 6 Claremont Park, Finchley
back home…
parents working sundays in the garden
the pond, the goldfish, the forts incessant croaking,
the ten apple and pear trees in the back
facing the meandering “Brook”
which overflowed one year submerging the garden
in a rain-drenched summer.
I had never shared their passion and delight
but now returning to my deck
our garden-less plot on which our townhouse
stands
this is my garden.
Carefully patting the soil into each container
with the help of my grandchildren
who take these tasks very seriously
the plants go into each side by side
then the framed containers are screwed
(by Allan, who, of course, has power tools)
into the bannister tops around the deck.
Finally the deck is enclosed by 9 black-potted planters
and I feel as proud as farmer Giles [1]
and every night I emerge to water them lovingly.
This by any standard is a modest attempt
and I have no idea what prompted me to go out
and commit to this project
yet deep inside
the impulse to “force the hand of the One Above”
kept ringing in my ears.
For having created the vessel the “kli”
surely spirituality too hates a vacuum!
surely Abba will come home and be present to this mini Garden of Eden
awaiting him in its privacy and greenery.
He used to like to sit out here in the sun drenched visits
away from the enclosed dark West Side apartment
absorbing the sun on my deck
So now all is ready for him.
All is prepared
the “arousal from below”
has been initiated,
we must but wait for improvement.
[1] Beyond Our Ken 1958-1964 BBC, featured characters such as Betty Marsden’s Fanny Haddock (which parodied Fanny Cradock). It was also notable for Pertwee’s Frankie Howerd impersonation, Hankie Flowered, and Hugh Paddick’s working-class pop singer Ricky Livid – the name being a mickey-take on contemporary pop singers’ stage names such as Marty Wilde and Billy Fury. Another favourite was Kenneth Williams’ country character, Arthur Fallow field, who was based on Dorset farmer Ralph Wightman, a regular contributor to the BBC radio programme “Any Questions?” Fallowfield’s lines were full of innuendo and double entendre – on one occasion Horne introduced him as the man who put the sex in Sussex. Fallowfield’s reply to any question began: “Well, I think the answer lies in the soil!” http://rokradio.com/beyond-our-ken/
Julian Ungar-Sargon
This is Julian Ungar-Sargon's personal website. It contains poems, essays, and podcasts for the spiritual seeker and interdisciplinary aficionado.
