FOR THE GARDEN IS THE MIND

Missive #6 - Transcribed Poetic Dictation

[While sitting in a car en route to the part of this land that first witnesses the birth of the sun, a voice announces itself inside and begins to recite the following poem, words and line-breaks visible before my mind’s eye as they are uttered; no vision accompaniment] Received 5/22/2023 | ~4pm

FOR THE GARDEN IS THE MIND
As the House is the Psyche
And the Psyche, the Soul.
Every compartment of soul
Is present in the physical
Dwelling of your body, where you
Sleep, take a moment and Notice
What is nearest to you, in that place?
Where do your eyes rest, first
And what path do they take
From there? Do you have shelves?
What have been placed on them?
Which books are in which order?
The bathroom, the chair, the kitchen,
The dining room table, the sunroom,
The cupboards, the utensils, the tools,
The bowls, the artwork, the rocks,
The pots, the boxes, the clothes,
The rugs, the keys, the jars, the
Sinks (sinking, syncing up), the
Shoes, boots, Sandals, Dirt Dust and
Dander; hair in corners, Fire,
Floor, Ground, Ceiling, Stairs, Steps.
All of these are symbols of
What is within you. The absence
of any and all of these things
Too, a symbol, or symbolic.
If there is no house to contain
You, to play upon you, the
inHabitus shifts to our surroundings.
The body is our temple, and makes
A temple of where we are.
Step “outside” your “house”,
Into the Garden (of your mind).

The Garden is 'Your' Mind.
The part of Mind entrusted to your
Care, your stewardship. Watch the land
Carefully, at first; learn how it is,
How it wants to be, who it expresses
Itself as, to be, to become.
(Remember, this is all your mind,
The embodiment, material re-presentation
Thereof, and upon). Learn the Language
Of this land, of these plants, trees,
Stones, Sand, pine boughs and beds,
Common Violets, Lilies-of-the-Valley,
Poppy plumes, Ajuga blue bugle
Weeds, Crab grass, morning glories,
Creeping vines, creeping El-fin
Thyme. When you have learned
To hear the Land's desires,
The land's cries, disparages,
Exhilarations, gentle nudges and nods,
And at last its 'No's, then
It is time to get dirty, sore
Cut and bruised. Put your hands
In the earth, offer water,
Pray with your forehead down,
On the moist moving soil.
Stay there a moment, Eyes closed,
In the Darkness of all that is
Below the surface, 'sub'conscious,
Fertile and alive, hidden, and
Revealable, awaiting revelation of
Roots and mycelial substrata
Speaking in subtle energetic
electric pulses, trees gab and gossip
About You, and the funny things
You do. Slowly, open your
Eyes, in an attitude of gratitude,
Kiss the Earth, and begin.
Uproot what must be removed.
She will tell you what today's
"Weeds" are, and you may even
come to understand why they must
Go; make room for what must
Grow. Stay with it. Clear
Branches, leaves, uncovering lush
Patches of Moss, frilled and frondling
Let your fingers linger in brushing;
Smell everything. Be filled with
Every rich brown and green and pink
Scent, sent to you, calling forth
Your memory, what moves in and
Out of forgetance, forgivance,
Indulgences of soul. The Psyche
Encircled by the womb (wings) of Mind,
The Garden; Edenic, every garden
Boundaried arbitrarily, as is the soul
Compart~mentalized and One whole.

Bring your attention back to the land
To the garden. Prune and Shape
The shrubbery, pre-molded and yet
To-be-revealed before you, by you.
What is it to prune a thought
Structure? Instructure: the land
Instructs us, in and by its mental
Dimension — the same body in
Different places, from different
Perspectives. Drop in where needed,
See what is needed; Smell what you
Need to Smell; Touch what beckons
To your Touch, gentle brush
Or forceful pull, twist, snap,
Break, Cut, Toss away
(There is no away to throw things)
And, when you're ready: Plant.
Plant new flowers, new herbs, new
Trees. Anything the land calls for.
It may take 4 years, or even more,
for the Garden to allow your in(ter)vention.
Dig holes and find worms, rocks,
Roots — some dense, some large,
And far from what they feed.
They knew exactly where to go.
The Earth knew exactly where you
Needed to dig, to see them, At
That Time. This is a gift. One
of the greatest gifts you can
be given. The trust of the Earth,
Baring herself to you, inviting your
Knowledge, your learning, your
Gaze, taking everything in. Thank
The Earth for what is given, and
Give back. Plant your new ideas.
Water them. Watch them grow.
Tenderly at first, needing extra
Nourishment, extra attention, tending,
Loving. Until they root out,
And embed themselves in their
Dark surroundings, and seek their
Neighbor roots, rocks, beetles,
Bees, butterflies, paper wasps.
And they too then grow, and spread,
And assert themselves, their presence
In the landscape of your Mind.

Do not be surprised when everything
Moves, when everything changes
In your thoughts, in how 'You' think,
When and What and Why.

It is true that thoughts happen
To us, rather than us thinking them.
And it is too true that the
Mind occasionally invites our
Own thoughts, and ideas; our
Participation in the Play of Mind,
In the experience of a piece of
Mind being—at least for a time—
Ours, hours at a time, or for 'just'
One moment, eternal or brief, fleeting
And Precious. This too is a gift; one
of the greatest gifts you can be
Given. Give yourself to it, to yourself.
This is just the beginning.
Kneel, and Pray, and Kiss the Earth
Again, and await the coming instructions.

For the Garden is The Mind
And the House is the Psyche
And the Psyche is the Soul.
—Ornament accordingly.

---

Lily of the Valley in my Garden (May 2023)