Letters to garden makers

Dear Monty, The ancient sky cleared tonight to reveal ancient stars, suns, planets held in the deep blue black. We look up at the past. Ancient manuscripts written by Greek scribes who copied copies century after century the text changing subtly with each age. Man is definitely not infallible ! Is the truth to be found in words ? Perhaps truth is not unlocked by knowledge or scientific analysis but by the spirit. Words which although copied - written and spoken and open to misinterpretation and misunderstanding contain potential like seeds if we have ears to hear them. The gospels or good news writings vary in their accounts and may be distorted by time much like the light of distant stars  - reaching us countless ages after bursting into life, but even though they may not exist now, are nevertheless as real as each breath we take in this cold night air. The bowing trees and flooded plains. The storms rage - we rage but cannot see ourselves as we are. ...

Dear Monty, I am acutely aware that this can be an embarrassing blog to read, mainly down to my naivety, and the understanding that any discussion about spiritual matters or matters relating to the soul can be nauseating to some. But I was heartened by the debate at the thinkingardens supper, and by Tristan Gregory's article and the responses to it, especially that by Charles Hawes, which you can read here :  thinkingardens.co.uk Charles mentions the soul of a garden, and questions whether we can recognise such a thing in a garden. It is a strange turnaround that discussing sex is no longer taboo but it seems that spirituality in particular seems to be relegated to the top shelf and is hidden in a brown paper bag. Being spiritual and an artist and someone who is making a garden perhaps is even more ridiculous and perverted. I want to be clear that being spiritual is not about being some kind of higher mortal who looks down on everyone else, neither is it about being a...

Dear Monty, I walked the coal tip above the house and garden. A fresh breeze blew off the distant sea funneling Spring air up the valley, the birds responded by singing territorial songs. Even the coal tip looked dazzling after the rain, light bounced off foliage, coal and the cans and plastic bottles thrown carelessly by trial bikers - a complete contrast to my previous two days in the Metropolis. Yesterday I sat in the V&A the morning after the  thinkingardens.co.uk  supper organised by Lucy Masters and Anne Wareham, drinking tea with Sue whilst listening to a piano recital. During the discussion there seemed to be two camps forming, one that extolled gardens and design, and those who favoured gardening and 'how to'. Although there seemed to be division, there was a common thread, a connection between the two - creativity. It seemed to me that if creativity is explored both in design and in horticulture, in gardening and making gardens then we may begi...