The Origines of this Fundraising Project

This journey began as a simple gift idea for a very important person in my life, my husband Robert. The act of creating a garden for him, made me create a garden for myself, for my family and now, by way of this website and the sessions I offer within it, I hope to invite my community at large, to rediscover our surrounding world for the wonderful garden that it is. The images below, are photographs of mine, taken over many years... unbeknownst to me at the time, I now see what I couldn't see then... gardens and more gardens everywhere! Everyone, gardens! Everything, gardens! Gardens! Gardens! Gardens.

The Journey:

As mentioned previously, the first time a went about creating one these solemn little creations, it was as a gift for my husband, Robert. He was going through a stressful period at work, the intensity of which didn't seem to be letting down. His long-standing admiration for Japanese culture and for the serene beauty of temple moss gardens inspired me to look into equipping him with a tabletop Zen gardens—a peaceful escape he could turn to amidst his challenges.

I did a quick search online for sourcing such intricate objects, in ready made form, and was very underwhelmed by the options I found. My background education, training and overall dabbling in the arts (as a graphic designer, illustrator, photographer, painter, etc.) intuitively lead me to creating one for him myself. Little did I know that in doing so, I was opening a door to an entire universe within our universe which would eventually lead me to a whole new understanding on how I/we interact with the material world around us, and how it impacts my/our soul and ultimately helps me/us draw connections between our past, our present and our outlook into the future.

In the process of crafting this gift, I eventually found myself immersed in the art of Zen gardening. I learned to build rakes, design texture spheres, and incorporate meaningful objects from our travels and shared memories into miniature landscapes. The act of creating these gardens became more than a project—it became a way to connect with myself and the world around me.

I am part of the Tri-Parish + Friends for Refugees, a group dedicated to helping refugees transition from years in camps to new beginnings in Canada. Our committee, at that time, was planning a fundraising jazz concert at a local church. As part of that effort, I suggested donating a handmade Zen garden as a raffle prize. The concert was a success, the numbers were drawn and the winning garden went to the saxophonist of the jazz band!

We later held a couple of fundraising events during which I had the pleasure of sharing my new-found interest with people of all ages from our local community. These interactions around my growing collection of gardens and tools allowed me to discover a couple of things. I discovered that children were particularly fascinated by the texture spheres (they was no telling how long some of them lingered at our table or would have stayed on ... rolling these tinny spherical sculptures around the sandscape I had setup for people to try them out ...). I also realized to my greatest surprise that most people needed a tiny bit of a training in order not to completely crush my delicate little rakes in the first couple of strokes they performed with them in the sand! I also came to the conclusion that a Zen Garden is as unique as each person that literally crosses its path... We each bring ourselves into it, through it, with it, in our own way. Our treasure box is personal and unique sole to us! Sure we can offer a box or a sand-filled "scape of land" or maybe a rake or two, some stones and a tree to someone, to invite their soulful self out to play, but after that point they have to populate it with their treasures and their own truth ...

That year, for Christmas, instead of following my original plan of offering a single completely staged ready made per-landscaped Sand Garden to Robert, I unveiled a dining room table set up with everything necessary for every member of our family to create their own Zen Garden. Around the table were wooden-framed sand gardens, one for every person, each containing a thick layer of white sand ready to be raked, shaped, and brought to light. Scattered across the table were a variety of items to inspire and personalize the designs: gnarly pieces of wood, dried shrubs, rocks, crystal pebbles, seashells, pieces of moss, clay texture spheres for shaping dunes, and even tiny trees, huts, and other miniature elements... just the beginnings of something!

When I unveiled the setup, we all gathered together to design our gardens, choosing elements and enjoying the calming process accompanied by relaxing music. It was a truly magical moment. Although Robert enjoyed the activity itself, his garden remained at home and became a piece of my own collection. Meanwhile, our children and their partners were so enchanted that they took their creations home with them.

These experiences—both personal and communal—revealed to me the therapeutic, meditative, and symbolic potential of Zen gardens. Over time, I gathered more experience, explored new designs, and created kits to make Zen gardening accessible to friends and families. Recognizing the need I felt to share the full potential, purpose, and benefits of Zen gardens, I was inspired to create this website.

Meet Me In The Garden is an invitation to connect with ourselves, loved ones, or the world around us through the simply playful yet potentially profound act of creating and tending to these serene landscapes.