Secret Gardens

      While working in my garden this week, I've had some interesting thoughts.  My garden used to be tended and taken care of by my mother.  She passed away when I was nine, and the garden has never been the same since.  No one in my family has the experience or same priorities as she had to keep it as beautiful as it once was.  I am now twenty so it's been a few years since it was truly kept up.  We do our best, but it seems that no matter what, each year when summer hits, we have our own "Secret Garden" project on our hands.  It is overgrown and in some places completely engulfed by weeds in others.
      Today while working in a section, I found there was some sort of large thorn bush growing throughout and underneath all the other weeds.  In the beginning I hadn't realized just how large it had become.  It was so far underneath and entangled within the other weeds, I couldn't see most of it.  It only cam up far enough to receive enough sunlight.  I would reach in to pull a large section of weeds and feel a sharp thorn in my hand from my poor choice to place my hand in blindly.  I quickly began clearing out the weeds that I could see were safe, and not covered with thorns. I soon found that there were several vines of thorns throughout the entire section that I was trying to weed, and they were firmly planted and attached to wherever its roots were.   
      This vine and its placement got my mind thinking.  For some it is strange, I know I have a somewhat peculiar thought process, but I tend to relate just about everything to the gospel of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and my own personal journey to reach exaltation and live with my Father in heaven again.  I began to see the weeds as sin, or more so, the acceptance of evil temptation.  We all have sin in our lives, but some sin is easier to spot and pull out than others.  We sometimes ignore small weeds or sin, because they seem harmless.  It does not seem that they will do much real damage as long as we keep them in our designated area for them.  We'll pull out a little when they seem to get too big, but never the whole thing.  Or we take it out, but allow it to grow back.  But beneath these small sins is a greater danger.  In neglecting to take out small weeds, I allowed a far greater, more painful, and deeply rooted weed to grow.  In keeping our small sins around, we allow more devastating temptations to become more deeply accepted and rooted within us. By the time we see these temptations and sins, they are already a part of us.  There does not seem to be anything out of place.  These temptations and sins happily coexists with our other sins that cloud our site of its evil potential. Weeds overcome the good wanted plants, just as sin, if we allow it, can cloud our vision and choke out the good things in life that we should value. 
     How many of us have secret gardens that we have neglected? We strive to create wonderful gardens full of beautiful flowers or pieces of truth, but neglect a portion, because it's not that bad, or not as bad as so and so, or we're just not ready and can't take that step etc. We know they are there, but choose not to look at them or examine those areas closely, for fear that we might get hurt in the process of removing those unwanted weeds.  Sin, weeds, and Satan all enjoy procrastination and lack of education. 
     As we gaze over our individual gardens, there may be a lot we don't know. Some may even avoid finding out more information, in hopes of avoiding the responsibility.  But things do not work out so well that way.
    As  child, I once saw white flowers growing amongst the other flowers in the garden.  To my untrained eye and lack of experience, these flowers looked quite pretty.  I found myself somewhat disturbed when my mother began pulling them out.  She explained to me that these were morning glory.  A weed that tries to disguise itself as a wanted and pretty flower, but will overtake the entire garden if left to grow.  I am not a skilled gardener like my mother was.  A lot is likely due to lack of time and experience, but I cannot let that hold me back. My mother at least told me the basics. I know what is a weed and what is not and how to keep the garden alive.  I am not yet to the knowledge of keeping it alive to its full potential, but I am working on it. As I strive to learn more about gardening in my yard as well as in my personal life, and continue to pull out those weeds. I will one day look back on my big wonderful life to see a more beautiful garden than I ever imagined. 
    As always, remember that your life is as big and as wonderful as you make it.