Annie’s garden marches to a beat of it’s own, very much like that of its owner. It’s unconventional, unstructured and layered with depth that comes with time. It’s filled with unexpected and delightful nooks and crannies to explore and there are a myriad of organic seats dotted throughout the garden that invite one to pause and be still. When I wander through Annie’s garden, I find myself entering into a space of deep appreciation, filled with awe and curiosity. I can easily spend hours here and lose myself in the most healthy way. It’s a place that softens and leaves you in a totally different state to how you arrived. There’s an inner spaciousness and sense of peace that arises. This is the undeniable and effortlessly healing potential of a garden and nature at work.
I spent an afternoon capturing the natural elements and architectural details that spoke to me and witnessed the light and shadows at play. Words are often far from sufficient when it comes to describing the experiential moments that catch our breath and my hope is that these photographs can offer you some of the beauty that I experienced. So I invite you to take a few minutes in your day… to slow down, brew a cup of tea, perhaps put on a favourite musical piece and enjoy the magic of this McGregor garden.
“When the mind is festering with trouble or the heart torn, we can find healing among the silence of mountains or fields, or listen to the simple, steadying rhythm of waves. The slowness and stillness gradually takes us over.
Our breathing deepens and our hearts calm and our hungers relent. When serenity is restored, new perspectives open to us and difficulty can begin to seem like an invitation to new growth.
This invitation to friendship with nature does of course entail a willingness to be alone out there. Yet this aloneness is anything but lonely. Solitude gradually clarifies the heart until a true tranquility is reached. The irony is that at the heart of that aloneness you feel intimately connected with the world.
Indeed, the beauty of nature is often the wisest balm for it gently relieves and releases the caged mind.”
John O’Donohue ~ Irish poet and philosopher
(Excerpt from Beauty: The Invisible Embrace)
All photography: Lana Kenney ©
Lisa Prior
10 March
Fabulous pictures!!! Thanks for sharing.
Gail
13 March
What beautiful images which portray the serenity of this garden. Wonderful play of light & shadows. I particularly liked the poem!