All of last year (2009) I wanted an allotment, but I wasn’t sure I was up to it! When I came back from Argentina I was determined to give it a go! I registered for an allotment but didn’t hold my breath, I’d heard that you could be waiting for up to two years! Over the Christmas holidays I watched ‘The Secret Garden’ and one scene struck me; the niece of the depressed mansion owner goes into his room one night to beg him not to send her away to a boarding school and she asks him for a ‘bit of earth’. All she wants is her very own bit of earth. This bit of earth brings her so much joy and heals many of the people who live in the mansion and restores relationships.
I also watched a movie called ‘Grow Your Own’, it’s based on allotment life and the realtionships there! Social Services place a few immigrants there and many of the characters have a range of issues, big and small, but it’s fascinating to observe the healing that is brought through nature and community.
An allotment represents the gift of work and the beauty of natural creativity. I’t jolly hard work but there’s something restorative about being out of doors and being in tune with the seasons and weather!
