Every child (I would like to think) has spent many a bedtime hours being read to.....and what better book to read before bed than The Secret Garden. I grew up with an old hardcover copy in my bookshelf next to my bed. When I wasn't in the mood to start a new book, I reached for The Secret Garden.
Written by Frances Hodgson Burnett and published in 1911, The Secret Garden is the story of the redemption of two miserable and sad children. Full of metaphors for adults, and wound with an exciting plot for children, the story is about the restoration of not only a garden, but of two small souls.
I began reading this book to my children when they were about five years old, and it fills my heart to hear that my own children have read this book to their young children.....not once, but many times.
As gardening season approaches and our son-in-law begins pruning, seeding, and mulching, my mind is full of day dreams, of quiet times spent in our own small secret courtyard garden. There needn't be much space, or loads of sun. Almost any small corner can be turned into a tiny garden where books are read, dinner is served, and respite is found. Every soul needs a sanctuary.
"When you have a Garden, you have a Future, and when you have a Future, you are Alive".
Frances Hodgson Burnett