My dear friend, Sally Rowe, and I were delving into the soul-satisfying delights of gardening recently as we strolled at less than a snail’s pace along the paths that thread through Sally’s enchanting garden in Barryville, NY. Here and there we bent to inspect this or that expression of texture, form and color while pondering the evolvement of her much beloved garden.

Everything seemed to invite pausing to take notice of the subtle transformations underway as the earth rises from its winter slumber.

My mother ignited my interest in paying attention to such wonders when I was quite young. Though we lived in a city, we were blessed with an ample yard. One of my fondest memories of that yard was its garden. In it, my mother grew many things, including the seeds of a passion for gardening in the hearts of her daughters. Toddling around her knees, I learned to love and to understand the miracle of earth, seed, sun and water.

A favorite part of my mother’s garden was, for me, the apple trees. Every spring, buds swelled and burst into cottony blossoms. Passersby slowed for a satisfying look at the raging expression of life returning after long winters. One day, a freshening wind would rise and steal the petals from the trees, tossing the white confetti about before arranging it in fragrant puddles.

A garden is an exploration of self, giving us mysteries to ponder, riddles to puzzle over and a glance into our own hearts. Gardens are like gazing globes that reflect back to us the outcomes of our choices and the impact of our actions. They test our strengths, expose our weaknesses and offer lessons in perspective.

Gardens can be healing for body, mind and spirit. Tending to a plant’s needs takes our minds away from our worries. Troubles melt as we drop to our knees in the dirt, seeding and weeding and watering and wondering, working diligently alongside the industrious bee, the patient toad, the silent garter snake—while being showered with birdsong.

Within the gates of a garden lie the ingredients for a good life—the chance to meet challenge with careful effort; a fitness plan involving daily physical labor and lifelong learning; the thrill of risk and experiment; the rewards of success and the lessons of failure; opportunity for reflection and celebration; the art of self-reliance; an understanding of the cycle of birth, growth, harvest, decline and death; an appreciation for the miracles of the seasons and awareness of the natural world’s fantastic system of checks and balances.

Even without a garden, one can still relish the wild awakening of nature. As spring rises throughout the Upper Delaware River region, invest some time engaging attentively with the mysteries of the natural world waking up. You are guaranteed a good return!

Visit www.sallyjrowe.com or follow @sallyrowegardener on Instagram for glimpses into Rowe’s garden and artwork.