Legacy

Two or three weeks ago I received an "Amazon Local" offer which included entry for two people to Barnsdale Gardens, together with afternoon tea, at a very reasonable rate.  My mind immediately went back to the days when the BBC programme Gardeners' World, presented by the late Geoff Hamilton, came from Barnsdale.  I hadn't realised that Barnsdale was not for from the town of Oakham, which is itself only around 25 miles from where we live.  Last Friday Sue and I travelled across to Barnsdale and thoroughly enjoyed both our walk rounds the gardens and our delicious afternoon tea!

Geoff Hamilton presented Gardeners' World for many years, until his untimely death in 1996.  He was much loved by the many who enjoyed his friendly and informative style of presentation, which was down-to-earth, honest and spiced with humour.  He was an early advocate of the organic approach to gardening long before it became more fashionable.  I must confess that I watched Gardeners' World much more often during the days of Geoff Hamilton, though I'm not sure how much I learnt even then!

It was a real treat to actually visit Barnsdale, with its 38 individual gardens on an eight-acre site.  Many of the gardens were originally devised and created by Geoff Hamilton himself.  I has a real sense, as we wandered around the site, that Geoff Hamilton's legacy was clear to see.  The organic techniques and principles which he used have been continued at Barnsdale.  DVDs of many of his TV programmes, along with his books, are still available for sale; a DVD was playing in the shop and it seemed rather strange to hear his gentle voice after all these years!  Geoff Hamilton's passion was to encourage and help others to experience the joy in gardening which he knew.  A foundation has been set up in his memory to assist students at his former Agricultural College.  Though he died some 19 years ago, his legacy lives on.

One element of my role as a church leader is to take funeral services.  A question which often crops up when thinking about a person who has died is, "what was their legacy?"  I find it a very challenging question, and I sometimes wonder what my own legacy will be.  In other words, what difference will the fact that I lived on planet earth make, both during my own lifetime and into the future?  Many years ago I started to write a book, based on some words of St Paul to the church in Corinth.  Paul uses the illustration of a builder; each person builds something with his life, and one day what we have built will be tested:

'No one can ever lay any other real foundation than that one we already have - Jesus Christ. But there are various kinds of materials that can be used to build on that foundation. Some use gold and silver and jewels; and some build with sticks and hay or even straw! There is going to come a time of testing at Christ’s Judgement Day to see what kind of material each builder has used. Everyone’s work will be put through the fire so that all can see whether or not it keeps its value, and what was really accomplished.' (1 Corinthians 3:11-13)

I never did get very far with that book, but the challenge remains!