Parable of Two Gardeners
A man had two gardens. Over each, he set a gardener.
At the beginning, the plots were wild and overgrown, and each gardener walked the land, dreaming of making it beautiful again.
The first gardener imagined a perfectly manicured lawn. He worked tirelessly clearing the grounds, pulling out weeds and wildflowers. As he worked, he saw the flurry of insects and small creatures that lived amidst the tall grass. One day while working he encountered a snake coiled around a tree. Startled, he quickly fled the garden. Growing fearful of fiery bites and prickly thorns, he cleared his field - tilling the soil and sowing his plot with the best grass he could find. For months the gardener worked. He mowed, trimmed, and fertilised his lawn until every square meter of grass was perfection. Nearly every blade was the same height, thickness, and colour. He built a rendered wall to encircle his lawn, protecting it against wild animals that might otherwise return. The insects, snakes, and rodents, no longer belonging to this landscape, ventured deep into the woods.
The first gardener saw his dream of owning a flawless lawn fulfilled. He received accolades and was recognised and celebrated throughout town for his beautiful lawn.
The second gardener also imagined his idyllic, perfectly manicured lawn. Like the first gardener, as he began clearing his land, he also saw countless species of plants and animals. Wild grasses, moss, and wide-leafed plants spread
across his garden floor. He too observed the insects, snakes, and rodents living there. As he spent time on his land, he saw that many of these creatures were nourished, shaded, and protected by the diversity of plants. He listened as the insects attracted green frogs and green frogs attracted snakes. He also learned that the hawks and foxes were drawn to the garden by the snakes and rodents. The gardener realised the garden's beauty and that each life somehow, and in some way, belonged. Though not entirely at ease with encountering a poisonous snake or hungry fox in the garden, he began to feel at home in this diverse community. So he trimmed bushes, laid stone paths, and placed mulch around the flowering plants.
One day he awoke to realise his ideals of his perfect lawn had been transformed; replaced instead with a deep sense of beauty and harmony. No longer yearning for awards or recognition, he found contentment in tending to their garden; cultivating space for an array of plants and animals to coexist, believing that through this complex medley of life, they supported and sustained one another.