Quiet Places
The Newsletter of The Quiet Garden Movement
In her book The White Stone – The Art of Letting Go Esther de Waal writes...
“As I begin to think about it I discover that one of the things that happens at a time of leaving –whether a place or a person – is a sharpening of perception. It is though seeing for the last time is akin to seeing for the first time. ... It is a gift and I find myself gazing in wonder at whatever there is in front of me.”
As Esther prepared to leave her beloved cottage in the Welsh borders, I too, am about to embark on that same journey—of saying goodbye to all that is familiar and safe and known.
Alongside the sadness sits a hopeful new beginning, a new chapter; the next adventure in a new home in Somerset. The Quiet Garden Trust and Movement will travel with me.
I (we) are fortunate this move is through choice. We are not fleeing a war torn village; we are not in fear of our lives, nor, the destruction of our home. Indeed we have a new home waiting for us. We are grateful for this.
Life shifts and settles around us. Change is inevitable; things do not remain the same, and this of course applies to all things. The charity recognises the changing views of how we meet as a large group and we are working on different ways of doing this differently. Garden hosts who have been with us for years and new hosts join.
Advent will bring some welcome time for reflection, space to pray and be still in these changing times. You will find details of two Advent series you can join in the pages to follow. Sarah
A new addition to ‘back to the garden’ Tremorran … walk the Winding Path to the top of the paddock, destination - a picnic bench where you can reflect on surrounding landscape of far west Cornwall, and on a clear day view the Isles of Scilly.
Annie Henry
Tremorran Back to the Garden
I heard this morning how many days it is to Christmas, and I had the familiar feeling of being out of step with the secular world, which seems to encourage us to think about our wants, rather than our needs. ‘But it’s all about Jesus’, I hear myself telling the radio, the ‘joy to the world’! I am thinking of joy as I have been reading again the ‘book of Joy’, about a meeting between Desmond Tutu and the Dalai Lama. They are discussing how they remained joyful during their very difficult lives. Desmond Tutu says that the way we heal our own pain and suffering, is to turn to the pain of others. He calls it a ‘virtuous circle’! We don’t hear the word virtue much at all now a days, do we? But these two joyful and virtuous men say that the more we turn towards others, the more joy we experience, and the more joy we can bring to others. The goal they say ‘is to be a reservoir of joy, an oasis of peace, a pool of serenity, that can ripple out to those around us in these very difficult days. Desmond Tutu believed that joy is in fact quite contagious, probably more contagious than any virus, and so thankfully, are love, compassion and generosity.
At Christmas, we will hear the beautiful beginning of John’s Gospel, ‘the light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it’. If we believe that, then we can dare to light candles in the darkness of our world, and walk in the light of the Lord’ and our response begins with the next step, however small that might be.
A prayer from the Iona community.
Living God, help us to be bearers of hope, to bring love to those in despair, to see possibilities for change even in the darkest experiences. May we encourage reconciliation, healing, and justice. And where our hope is weak, grant us the courage to wait in the dark until your light breaks through Amen
I pray you will have Joy and Peace at Christmas and in 2025 Blessings Kate
Time to stand and stare, or time to sit and reflect, walk, or simply “be”. Quiet Gardens are a place of stillness and beauty where people can go to sit and be still, reflect and pray.
A spider’s web clings to the dark green hedge, so fragile, its threads so fine that it might snap, tear, shred in the chill of Autumn. But it remains resilient at rest almost, as the spectrum is split creating rainbows in the darkness, and wisps of lightan echo of the mists which wrap the hills’ horizons like smoke.
There are symbols of peace, other symbolsdoves fly free, candles are lit and briefly flicker, silver grey olive boughs are brought forward in processions.
But a web too, shining in hidden places, making thin and insubstantial patterns, surprisingly tenacious may picture peace.
And those who look for hope, who seek silence among sounds, may find them unexpectedly in the still serenity Of a spiders web
More host news...
We had the most amazing quiet day at St Mary's on Sun 20 September.
I did a talk on "The Miracle of Music" which included some music making. We then went into silence either reading, praying or doing creative activities for two hours. After that, was afternoon tea. About 40 attended, and during the afternoon we were treated to the most amazing thunder storm (God's music). People stood in the porch and watched the torrential rain, some went outside!. After the rain came the freshness and the incredible chorus of birds. Such a special day.
Sarah Watts is host of St Mary’s Quiet Garden
POOLE AFTERNOON TEAS IN THE GARDEN AUGUST 2024
We were generally blessed with nice weather for the four afternoon teas we served on Wednesdays in August, thus fulfilling the expectation that the teas would be served “in the garden”.
We were a bit short of tea drinkers on the first Wednesday, but the three subsequent afternoons were well supported. Who came? Methodists, Quakers, Anglicans, plus others. But this was not a denominational contest! It was a demonstration of building community, and sharing the love and goodwill of the chapel with a larger group who wanted to enjoy the participation. Folks enjoyed the ambience and the potential for quiet meditation – even if the bustle to an extent made that difficult. Some questions were asked, and in some cases answered, about the way the garden had been designed and what it contained: the shrubs and the meditative aids such as the wind chimes and the labyrinth. The Quakers attending were able to recall their contribution to the creation of the garden.
Many had the opportunity to see the recent refurbishments within the chapel for the first time: the new windows, the reorientation of the seating to face the garden (emphasising the relationship between the chapel itself and the Quiet Garden), the new decor, etc.
Rev Philip Goggin & Rev Malcolm Lorimer
Thomas Traherne and Denise Inge
Thomas Traherne, priest, poet and mystic, died 350 years ago in September 1674,possibly of smallpox; he was not yet forty. His poetry and prose were little known during his lifetime and it was over two hundred years after his death that the full extent of his writings came to light. In recent times his work was made accessible by Denise Inge, an American academic and author who became a leading authority on Traherne. Denise wrote three books on Traherne plus many articles and essays, and was the guest speaker at the 2013 Annual Gathering of the Quiet Garden held at Worcester Cathedral, home territory for Denise as her husband was at the time the Bishop of Worcester. Her talk, a wonderful mix of enthusiasm, authority and humour was given with the knowledge that her cancer prognosis was not good.
Very sadly, Denise died a year later. Her final book, ‘A Tour of Bones: Facing Fear and Looking for Life’, published posthumously, was remarkable both in its subject matter and timing.
Living above a medieval charnel house in Worcester and wanting to contemplate her mortality, the book relates her tour of four ossuaries in Europe, wanting to sit with the bones until their message was no longer a fearful one. However, perhaps the real fascination of the book lies in her thoughts on life, that our real fear is that we are not truly living. ‘A Tour of Bones’ is a must read and, if read in conjunction with her Traherne books, gives a fascinating tour of a life well-lived.
Chris Holmes Treasurer
A Tour of Bones is a passionate testament to the conviction that living is more than not dying, and that contemplating mortality is not about being prepared to die but about being prepared to live.
ATour of Bones: Facing Fear and Looking for Life Denise Inge Bloomsbury Continuum
ASIN : B00OHH0L8I
Join our Patron Brian Draper during Advent
To find out more about this special Advent series please follow the link here
WHERE THE REED GRASS SWAYS
In this garden, where the reed grass Sways and foxgloves drop their hats on
Loamy soil and campions paint
A deep red splash along the path, I thought I saw a flash of wings
And heard insects hum above the Pond and saw trees, taller than last Year, where birds lay their eggs and nest.
And I’m certain there are many Creatures here inside this garden, So tread softly on the footpath
Where foxgloves grow and campions
Splash red petals on the loamy
Soil and where the reed grass sways
Janet Wilkes
Become a Friend
Regular support through our Friends Scheme ensures the charity can maintain and develop the Movement, meaning people of all ages can discover and experience the benefits of time out in nature. Click here to join.
Join us for a series of online ADVENT QUIET EVENINGS
Monday 2nd December at 7.30pm
Monday 9th December at 7.30pm
Monday 16th December at 7.30pm
To book a place please click here
THE FOLLOWING GARDENS WERE WELCOMED TO THE MOVEMENT
Click on each link to find out more.
Little Eden
Harrogate Rest Quiet Garden
Quarmby Quiet Garden
Hillcrest Quiet Garden
Castlehold Baptist Church
All Saints Quiet Garden
St Bartholomew Quiet Garden
St Mary's Quiet Garden
Quakers' Wood, Rookhow
St John the Baptist Church
Private Home Surrey
Private Home Yorkshire
Private Home West Yorkshire
Private Home Cumbria
Place Of Worship Isle of Wight
Place Of Worship Tasmania
Place Of Worship Worcestershire
Place Of Worship Hertfordshire
Place Of Worship Cumbria
Place Of Worship Devon
Claridge House Retreat Centre Surrey
All Saints Catholic Primary School School Mersyside
Erw Dewi/Dew's Acre Community Pembrokeshire
PATRONS
The Rt Revd John Pritchard I Richard Foster I Terry Hershey |The Revd Lucy Winkett | Shane Connolly | Brian Draper | Bishop Graham Usher | Professor Gillian Prance | Rt Revd Dame Sarah Mullally|
HIGH DALBY HOUSE
Trinity Sunday proved an appropriate day when almost 100 people gathered for the opening, by the Bishop of Whitby, of the Trinity Garden at High Dalby House, a boutique retreat in Dalby Forest, near Pickering.
Reclaiming the acre of horse ménage, the design explores the mystery of a Trinitarian God in following a Celtic knot, triquetra. This has three ‘petals’ representing each of the three persons of the Trinity, which are then bound together in a centre circle. The first ‘petal’ speaks of the creator. Here the abundant prolific planting has a jungle theme set with an observatory dome through which to view the dark skies of the North York Moors.
The second has a Japanese planting theme to speak of the peace of Christ. This borders a lively beck reminding us of Jesus the living water.
The third is the Spirit section with a prairie planting scheme where the wind blows though grasses, and the flowers are the colours of flame.
The centre circle structure is made of corten steel and contains an armillary, the earth set in a universe held in the arms of God. The planting here is rampant, colourful, and feminine. Roses, honeysuckles, clematis soften the steel.
We have had some fun discussing the theology of the Trinity. In practice, it remains a mystery that people experience through the garden as something of God speaks in a profoundly moving way as they find rest and peace, often unexpectedly.
Rt Revd and Rt Hon Dame Sarah Mullally Bishop of London joined us as a Patron in May and we are so grateful for her support:
I am acutely aware of the impact of green spaces on our mental, spiritual and physical health. My experience living in the very centre of a city has made me profoundly grateful to have a garden, and to be so close to parks and squares. Many of our churches in London have beautiful gardens and churchyards which are open to members of the public.. These spaces are used by people seeking peace and quiet, a place to reflect and pray, or simply rest and breathe deeply. Our relationship with nature is just as important in built-up areas as in the depths of the countryside.
Contact Ian and Linda 01751 460001 ian@highdalbyhouse.com Keep in touch
https://quietgarden.org/
facebook @quietgardens info@quietgarden.org
Office contact details
The Quiet Garden Trust
The Rectory, Dark Lane, Ewyas Harold, Herefordshire. HR2 0EZ. UK