On botanical gardens.

A stream of consciousness following a stroll in Köln botanical garden .

In a botanical garden again. This time in Köln. I felt compelled to sit down and think about why it is that I love being there so much. Or rather, I felt compelled by its beauty to just write. To sit and allow my emotions to bleed ink onto the page.

I suppose this is my ode to botanical gardens.

Botanical gardens are spaces of education. Of learning not about nature, but from nature. A space where flora and fauna offer sanctuary. Offer peace , calmness, serenity. That in itself is their lesson. If you simply slow down, listen, feel, you reach a quiet space. Here you shouldn’t think but rest. If you allow your mind to be still just long enough you begin to tune into life’s rhythm. The not-so-gentle hum of living. The vibrancy of life around you. You can hear the plants breathe. You can sense the growing of stems and the yearning for sunshine. You can feel the trickle of water through the soil and the slurping of roots. You can observe the communication from one organism to another. The ecstatic connection between living things; between lives.

And it is when you feel your heartbeat and breath entwine with the heartbeat and breath of the beings around you that you may commence thought. Lean into your connection. Connectivity is creativity. As loud as the surroundings grow, your mind grows with it. You are tuned in now; tuned into nature’s heartbeat. Your heartbeat. Not two rhythms in synchrony, but one rhythm. It is in this state of harmony that you can open your heart, mind, and soul to truth. To pain. To beauty. To completeness. To others. To oneself.