In Sonya’s Garden

by Gege Sugue

(Or maybe I should call this: The Unbearable Lightness of Doing Nothing)

Finding myself

In this garden wonderland

Where the smells and sights

Flavors and textures accost the senses

Leaving me breathless

Yet filled with life

The scent of tarragon

Of eucalyptus, mint and basil

Invading, tickling my nostrils

Relaxing my mind

Once strained and stressed

Oceans of green

Refreshing my eyes

Bursts of purples and pinks

Of yellows, blues, and crimson

Awakening my spirit

Against the pitch dark night

The dancing, flickering white of flirting fireflies

Arousing wonder

Giving delight

The chirping of cicadas

The croaks of frogs

The distant mooing of the cows

Amusing my soul

Teaching me that music

Need not come out of an electronic box

And my tone deaf ears

Do not mean the song within me

Cannot be sung

At Sonya’s dining room

I cleansed my palate

Off the city’s fast food junk and gunk

And my tongue discovered

Feasts of flavors

Of fresh herbs and organic leaves

Of virgin oils and buttery bread

Of slow cooked dishes

Of meats of animals free to roam the range

Of food that comfort

And also surprise

With twists and secret recipes

I discovered the novel experience

Of plucking leaves from the plant

Instantly popping them into my mouth

I discovered flowers that looked good

And tasted even better

I discovered a unique and splendid use for mint

That has forever changed my reaction to yams

At Sonya’s Garden I tasted

I savored a million wonderful healthy flavors

I found myself in Sonya’s Garden

In slow, solitary walks

The space around me

Bathed in the deep dark blue of dusk

I floated along meandering paths

Of bricks and dust

Strewn with muted lights

Diffused by color stained glass

The lightness of my steps

The stillness that soothed frayed nerves

The silence embracing me

All these hushing my noisy mind

Illuminating the yearnings of my heart

The way the sunlight spilled

Into the room told me

I was no longer in that urban jungle called home.

Instead, I was a visitor in a jungle I couldn’t call mine

Where a bug on the dining table

And a caterpillar on my chest

Which in the city would bring about manic screams

But in here seemed natural

Something to giggle about

I was, after all, the one invading these insects’ territory

And I discovered that home need not be in just one place

Finding myself

Doing nothing

Yet learning

And growing

Resting without guilt

Slowing down

Yes, I had time to smell the roses

And arrange them

I discovered, awakened creativity long lay latent

Finding myself

Munching English tea sandwiches

Sipping rosebud tea

Engaging in useless banter

Talking without agenda

Discovering that the art of conversation

Can sometimes be in not having one at all

Finding myself ensconced in my gorgeous brass bed

Draped in crisp, white linen

Reading Borges and Sartre

When my brain felt like mush

After an hour of sheer ecstasy

As Joy, my masseuse, kneaded my muscles

Unknotting knots

Destressing the stress

Of a body battered by the business of daily living

Discovering I can sleep before midnight

Finding peace and bliss in a pillow scented with ylang-ylang

I found myself in Sonya’s Garden

Showering in the wild

With nature as my curtain

Invisible, imagined voyeurs forgotten

I found within me

The courage to bare

In Sonya’s Garden

There were no keyboards to pound

And I found myself writing

The old fashioned way

Right brain dominating

Taking over left brain’s control

Murano pen scribbling and drawing

Leaving a trail of ink

Scented jasmine

Across the paper’s surface

And I discovered that writing

Need not be a painful practice

Of squeezing thoughts and smithing words

That I can write from the gut

And have the courage to bare my soul

I found myself in Sonya’s Garden

In this garden wonderland I had a glimpse

A vision of what I want to be

In the frenzy of doing nothing

I experienced a sampler of the life I want to live

In the dry, lifeless silence of the couples in the dining room

I saw the life of the marriage I did not want

As I missed the people not here

I learned what and whom I value

I found myself in Sonya’s garden

I am that caterpillar

Precariously balancing on the edge of the leaf

Imperfect outside

The beauty inside ready to burst forth

Plodding through life

Knowing something great is about to happen

Not quite sure what

Just knowing it’s going to be beautiful

I’m going to come out of my cocoon

Soon

Flying

Celebrating myself

Celebrating my discoveries

Celebrating the journey I’ve had

And the journey ahead

I found myself in Sonya’s garden

And I liked what I discovered