We give gifts often because it’s expected, sometimes because
we feel the need to fill a need, and, ideally, because we are motivated by a
sudden inspiration and decide not to stress about whether the receiver will
think it is too much or too paltry, or misconstrue our intentions. The truth
is, I would like to be that person who gives gifts willy-nilly all the time for
no reason at all. Yes, something to work on.
This particular list has a theme, and that theme is “gifts
with a mission.” Or, it could be
“gifts that give.” Still, it is I who gets to decide the missions, which gives
the gifts a selfish bent. The whole topic is fraught with peril. Nevertheless,
here goes:
1.
A $50 membership to the Garden Conservancy will
do some good, even if the recipient puts the membership card in a pile and rediscovers
it in October, 2014 after the frost has blackened the basil. But, assuming that
does not happen, he or she will receive an Open Days Directory, and thereby be alerted to some wonderful garden visiting
opportunities. The mission, in this case, is that of restoring once beautiful
spaces to their former glory. Before this worthy organization existed,
landscape restoration—if it was considered at all—took a back seat to building
preservation. Which was simply not fair.
2. The HerShovel was designed
and manufactured by women for women. The shape of the handle, the angle of the
blade, and the enlarged step were thoroughly thought out by Ann and Liz, the
Pennsylvania entrepreneurs who started Green Heron Tools. They minimize their
environmental footprint, advocate for the interests of women in agriculture,
and seek out women to trial their line of tools. Just for the record, I am
(sadly) not one of the testers.
3. There are a few books on nature and garden journaling
out there, each aimed toward a different type of “noticer.” For the writer, I
suggest The Forest Unseen by
biologist David Haskell, who has the gift of noticing the microscopic world and
relating its nuances to the vast geologic time scale. His writing soars. Artist's Journal Workshop
by Cathy Johnson is an expansive and joyful effort that includes journal pages
from 27 artists. Her project ideas and drawing guidance will leave you hankering
to create. Keeping a Nature Journal by Clare Walker Leslie and Charles Roth is an oldie but
goodie that offers a more nuts-and-bolts approach. The mission here, of course,
is getting us all to pay more
attention. So we will care, and know what it is that we care about.
4.
A tool holster (such as this handy Tommyco
model) has the beneficent mission of saving tools from the sad plight of losing
themselves to the wildness that is your garden. And you know how that ends: if
they reappear at all they turn up rusted beyond repair. So there you have it. A
simple, inexpensive device can save the lives of loved ones. You too can be a
patron of lost tools.
5. A Phalaenopsis
orchid may seem like a stretch, but consider this: To keep an orchid alive, to
appreciate it and coax it into a second, third, and fourth bloom, I believe you
have to strive to think like an orchid. That is, you must imagine yourself
clinging to a tree and absorbing the minerals in the rainwater that runs down
into the channels of its bark. Your ropey green roots aim this way and that,
exposing themselves to the moist night air, epiphytically grabbing convenient
surfaces. And after a time, when all is right, you send up a root lookalike,
which magically transforms itself into an exquisite series of intricate blooms.
If you think like an orchid, you will be less likely to drown your plant’s
roots. But, more to the point, you may also be inclined to think like a
pillbug, an eagle, a cloud. And imagine if all humans troubled themselves to
think beyond their own wellbeing. The earth would be a better place.
And wouldn’t that be lucky?
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