The world of Tzu Chi Augusts 2021 (Vol.136)

TZU CHI 136 51 Likewise, when we commit wrongdoings, we need to be aware of the root cause of misdeeds as a result of these five poisons that penetrate our mind. Thus, the thorns remind us to uphold the precepts and to banish greed, anger, delusion, arrogance and doubt from our minds. Uncle Voo is the guardian of the rose garden. He rides the bicycle for about 25 minutes from his home to the Hualien Tzu Chi Hospital to catch the shuttle bus to Jing Si Abode every day. He puts on the hat, flower sack, and cycles to the rose garden. He is 70 years old and has a slim body with a wry neck. Picking roses and pruning are his daily tasks in the garden no matter the weather. His diligence to accomplish the tasks serves as a role model for all, in spiritual cultivation. Rose picking and pruning seem to be common daily tasks for a gardener. However, he accomplishes those tasks with Great Love, and contributes his time and energy selflessly without expecting anything in return. Those tasks have become great things in his life. Roses are dried at 40℃ for six hours. They then become tiny purple roses, at only ten per cent of their initial size. Volunteers may select the roses which are in full shape and remove the stems and leaves. Uncle Lim is one of them who would sit in silence for hours, paying full attention in sorting out the best roses before packing them for sale. He is always in quiet contemplation when sorting the dried roses, often hours on end, as he spends his days in peace. He had a stroke two years ago and is still doing rehabilitation, language practice and acupuncture at the Hualien Tzu Chi Hospital every Tuesday and Friday, accompanied by his sister, who is a senior Tzu Chi Commissioner. She is ever willing to take care of him, accompany him to do rehabilitation, and guide him to do volunteer work in patience. The more we work in the rose garden, the more wisdom will arise. The picking of roses and the contribution of the volunteers reflect the Six Paramitas, namely giving, uphold precepts (proper conduct), endurance, diligence, contemplation, and wisdom. When I look at the rose garden, I can see a hundred wishes and blessings, filling our days with love, goodwill and joy! Our mind is a field planted with many types of seeds. If we plant roses in our garden, then roses will grow. So, always plant good thoughts in our mind as the quote of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow reminds us: “Kind hearts are the gardens, kind thoughts are the roots, kind words are the flowers, kind deeds are the fruits, take care of your garden and keep out the weeds. Fill it with sunshine, kind words and kind deeds.”