I should start by saying that at first glance, Nuch's front yard appears to be an overgrown jungle, but it is, in fact, a garden, designed and cared for by her father. However, it's not a typical garden. Being an abstract artist, Nuch's father has created, what I would call - an abstract garden.
In this picture, the "garden" is about to swallow my car.
I asked him one day if there was a design or purpose to his creation, and he patiently explained why this yellow flower was here, that fruit tree was there, how the light in the morning complemented the banana trees, while the reflection of the moonlight could be seen on the glossy leaves of the..... Okay, that's not exactly what he said, but the point was made. Although it looked like a Jackson Pollock painting, there was most certainly a method to his jungle madness.
That being said the "garden" is often a topic for debate in the family because Nuch and her brother have a much different vision as to what a garden should be. From their point of view, a garden is something you should be able to sit in or walk through and should, basically, just look like a garden. They insisted that their father trim back the plants and trees so that the garden could be "enjoyed", but their father refused. His logic is that when he walks through the garden, tending his fruit trees and flowers, he wants his skin to be able to feel the prick of a branch, the brush of a leaf, or the moisture of the morning dew.
So with its unique origins, I wasn't too surprised when empty bottles of water set upon wooden sticks began to appear. At first there were four or five. Now, there are about 20 sporadically placed throughout the yard.
Last week, as I was leaving for work, I, finally, asked Nuch's dad what was the purpose of the bottles - was he planning to recycle them, was he drying them out for future use, or was he incubating some exotic plant with it's own little greenhouse? He saw that I was in a rush and simply said, there are many reasons, but he would have to tell me later, as there was not a simple answer.
Aaah the suspense...
Finally, last Wednesday, while out for lunch on Father's day (the King's birthday), Nuch's dad had a chance to explain the purpose of these bottles.
Here he is explaining - by the way, no one told me that I should have worn a yellow shirt. Sure it was the King's birthday, but it was a Wednesday!!!
Initially, he had set out a few bottles because he liked the way the sun reflected through the plastic. As he explained it, the sparkles of sunlight added a touch of movement and energy against the static colors of the flowers, plants, and trees. Okay, that makes sense enough.
After the bottles had been out for a while, he started to notice that children on their way to school would stop and peer in through the gate to wonder at the bottles.
Soon after, Nuch's dad put out some more, and noticed that almost anyone who walked by would automatically turn their heads to look inside. Whether it was the sunlight in the day or car and motorcycle headlights at night, the refracted light always grabbed the attention of passersby.
The next step was putting bottles within the garden to attract birds. He said that, at first, a few birds came to investigate the light and were wary about the new environment. Now, birds can be heard singing all day, and this, as he says, helps Nuch's mother relax (if he's right, he needs more bottles).
To summarize, he explained to me that these plastic bottles that project light out from within the garden have, in turn, attracted life and energy from the outside back into his garden, as well as into his home. Deep, man.
But wait, that's not all...
Finally, he tells me that it's also a convenient way to store his bottles. When he wants to water his plants, he simply takes the bottle from the stick, dumps it in a nearby jug of water and goes about taking care of his garden. So, he says to me - as you can see, there are many reasons.
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