Plant Whatever Brings You Joy: Blessed Wisdom from the Garden

by Kathryn Hall

Over the years through the contemplative practice of daily early morning gardening, internationally popular gardening blogger Kathryn Hall has garnered 52 succinct and powerful metaphors or life lessons. She then illustrates each with timeless heartwarming stories from her own life, sure to capture the reader's imagination.

Plant Whatever Brings You Joy: Blessed Wisdom from the Garden is built upon such life lessons as:

*Clean up after a storm.
*Feel not obliged to make good use of every ripe fruit on the vine.
*Fiercely guard the seedlings.
*Judge not the flower by its bud.
*Resist the temptation to plant more than you can care for.
*Gently guide the tender vine else it become wild, tangled and impossible.
*Move gently among bees.

228 pages, Paperback

First published August 2, 2010

About the author

For over three decades it has been my daily habit to spend a part of each early morning in the garden. I have loved this simple practice as it has enabled me to begin the day breathing in the fresh morning air, awakening and renewing my body and preparing me for the day’s work. It has also served as a lovely transition from the night’s dreamstate to the workaday world, a perfect time to be thoughtful about what blessed wisdom the garden has to offer. I’ve always found that the simplest act such as pulling weeds or pruning roses stirs in me the most profound insights about the nature of life, and I trust that all the gardeners in the world who chance upon this book will know exactly what I mean. As a gardening blogger I’ve had the opportunity to speak with men and women around the world who share my passion for the simple, quiet joys the garden has to offer. Each of us in our own way has discovered the garden to be a place of rich renewal and of deep optimism.
From this treasure store I’ve attempted to extract the most barebones wisdom with the hope and intention of offering a simple tool which
might resonate and take root in the hearts and souls of readers and upon which they might draw at any opportune moment. If I have done my joyous task well the reader will find his or her interpretation to be highly and perfectly unique. To kindle in my readers their own unique interpretive paths I have illuminated what each metaphor evokes in me through the telling of stories from my own journeys. May your stories draw you closer to your own dear selves.

Love and gardening blessings,

Kathryn xoxo

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Part memoir, part self-help book, Kathryn Hall takes lessons that she has learned from the garden and uses them to tell stories from her life. In doing so she tries to extract bits of wisdom that will help the reader live a more fulfilling life.

It's not quite what I expected having never read her blog. I was rather hoping for 90% gardening and 10% life lessons. The balance is more 98% life lessons with some chapters doing little more than mentioning in passing a flower or plant. Basically, you won't learn how to garden from this book.

Nevertheless, her writing is excellent and she has interesting stories to tell and some helpful wisdom to impart. She seems like a woman I would enjoy getting to know, and she lets the reader get to know her through sharing some personal truths. Some stories are sad - animals and people die, there are disappointments. However, she is able to take that sadness and weave it into experience and acceptance of the circle of life. There's definitely some advice I will take and other bits that aren't as helpful for my life.

I think this would be a nice book to use for journaling. Often at the end of a chapter she asks thought provoking questions on which the reader can meditate or journal.

I gave this book 3 stars which on goodreads means "I liked it". There is one chapter that kept me from giving it 4 stars (really liked it); the chapter "When Pulling Up Weeds Get the Root".

This chapter talks about the overuse of medication in today's society which I agree is a problem. My concern was with her ideas about depression. Clearly this is somebody who has never experienced or had a loved one who struggles with actual medical depression which is as different from the blues as a mosquito bite is from a cancerous growth. Though Hall briefly acknowledges that some may need medication for depression the rest of the chapter seems to be dismissive of that idea. People who struggle with depression often deal with guilt and shame because they are incapable of recovering so to have somebody suggest that there are more natural routes to healing could potentially do harm to those suffering from depression. Yoga, massage, exercise and talk therapy, are great supplemental treatments, but nobody with depression should be made to feel that seeking medication is a weakness. I felt this chapter really reinforced false stereotypes about mental health.

I received this book as a goodreads first-reads giveaway.

[Fran Sorin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Plant Whatever Brings You Joy is a book that you can't put down once you start reading it. The author, Kathryn Hall, does a masterful job of intertwining autobiographical vignettes with life lessons learned in the garden. Her message is simple and profound ~ live your life with passion and joy. This inspirational book will touch your heart and open you up to the possibilities of living a rich and authentic life.

[Barbara White · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not knowing what to expect from this book and then reading it was a truly wonderful surprise. Plant Whatever Brings You Joy made me take deep breaths and relax and I read each page. Each of the chapters is a surprise from Kathryn Hall's life. After I read a chapter, I reviewed the title of it and thought how it translated to my life. What a great experience. Thanks to Goodreads First Reads for a copy of this great read, and for Kathryn Hall in having the wisdom to share it with us.

[Antonia Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

An enchanting book that weaves together life lessons learned in the garden in richly detailed and thoughtful metaphorical form. Ms. Hall's eloquent writings prove that simplicity can be profound. Her book is a soothing balm for today's challenging lifestyle. You'll want to savor each beautiful story, returning to them again and again.

[Kathlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

The beautiful book is filled with stories inspired by the garden, with spiritual insights woven throughout. We had company this evening and this book was quite a conversation piece. We passed it around and people took turns browsing through it. You can open up to any page and find profound pearls of inspiration and wisdom. I can read this one over and over. Great gift book too!

[Donna Ferris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy this book very much and it is the type of book that I can literally allow the book to open to where it wants to and I read it. The story and message that comes through is perfect for me at that moment. Always there by my bedside, like a friend in waiting, to help me pull out my own weeds within myself and allow the blossoming of my heart to occur.

[Sandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. The gardening/life lesson stories are profound, delightful, and beautifully crafted. Each story is a treasure. I read it a couple of years ago and have already revisited some stories more than once--it's that good.

[Velma]

P/U copy at Eureka Books (4/2015)?

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cherished 99% of this book. The chapter about the overuse of and defaulting to medication of depression / anxiety hit me the wrong way. Ignoring that chapter, this book was incredibly uplifting and inspiring.