Digging In

  Before I discuss gardening and landscape design, firstly, a bit of background to put this all in perspective . . . 

I was in between jobs in London. I wasn't working at the time and waiting for a new job to come through. On this particular day I was sipping a nice pint of ale at the White Cross pub in Richmond on the patio overlooking the Thames river. Such a beautiful part of London. Normally on a day like this I'd be stuck in an office with poor air conditioning doing mundane HR work, always as a temp, and doing work no one else in the office wants to do. A 'hired mercenary' as it were. But regardless of how dedicated and reliable I was to the job it always had to come to an end. Such is the way of today's London job market. Organisations are always 'restructuring', and that requires extra staff to help sort the confusion out. 

  After six years of working in this manner and this way of life, an 'existential crisis' was looming on the horizon: "This can't be it. This, surely, cannot be the only way to live and work. Birth. School. Work. Death." And repeat. 

  For many years I held the belief the self-employed route of working was too risky and uncertain. What if no one employs me? What if the business fails. However, when I observe the way in which I've been working and I now realise that my current work situation is actually fraught with even more uncertainly and risk. It's like this, for the most part I don't know how long I'm going to be an employee for when I am actually employed. Permanent work is becoming more and more difficult to obtain in this modern era. But we all have to work, right? And make no mistake I love working. It gives sustenance, it provides structure, and ultimately provides meaning . . . provided you can find meaning in your work. And for the most part I do . . . to begin with . . . and then it all comes to an end. Clear my desk. Hand in my security pass. Find a new job. Ad infinitum. The first few years I put it down to simply trying to find my own feet. Six years later, that's when it started to feel very weird.

  During the last couple of years I have acquired a very deep interest and appreciation for gardening and garden design. It is certainly much more than what I originally thought gardening was when during my adolescence; that being something my mother did, or something retirees do to pass the time. Or something that is quaint and twee, and dare I say, 'old fashioned'. How wrong I was. So how did my interest in gardening and landscape design initially come about, I hear you ask. Okay, I'm going to be really honest with you. While I was growing up I was became quite obsessed with the music of The Beatles. George Harrison was, and still is, one of my favourite musical heroes ever. But here's the thing, George was also a very committed and passionate gardener (Have you seen pictures of Friar Park?). When I read that he was and that he would rather be planting trees and digging weeds than performing on a concert stage I was staggered. "How can someone so cool be into something that looks so boring?" How times have changed. I'm now a guy well into his forties who can't wait to get home from the office and allow myself to become immersed in my thoughts while gardening. This is how I now like to 'bookend' my days. And if I'm not out outside getting my hands dirty then I am reading about garden design. And if I'm not learning about design principles then I'm probably out visiting one of Britain's many majestic landscapes.

  To put it simply . . . "I get this!"