I know it’s been quite a while since I posted here. And to have my latest post be about the same thing I last posted about may seem odd. But I’m so drawn to the Give & Take Garden that Bentsen and I stumbled upon in the spring, we’ve been back several times. In fact, finding this neighborhood treasure has me on the lookout for more treasures of this sort. Since Bentsen and I walk several times a week, we’re sure to find more.

Soon after my last post, I brought a friend to the Give & Take Garden. For this visit, we “gave” a special rock that was given to me several years ago by my niece, Stephanie. Etched into the rock were the numbers “143,” a reference significant to me because of a project I started years ago with a group of PSCS students. In short, 1-4-3 means “I love you” (1 letter, 4 letters, 3 letters). I’ll explain more in a future post very soon, one related to my neighborhood treasures idea.

Ella joined Bentsen and me for a walk to the garden in June. On that visit we brought along a little toy car to give. I was pleased to see that the 143 rock was gone, which means to me that someone thought enough of it to take it. Give and take, right?

Last night Bentsen and I went back. We brought along another toy car to give, having noticed in another recent visit that the first toy car I gave was gone. To my excitement, we found a Wonder Woman ring in the garden. For the first time, I felt compelled to take something, and for the rest of our walk last night I wore the Wonder Woman ring. I was excited to bring it home to show Ella, who was also pleased by the find. She suggested I take the ring to school and put it in my office next to a figurine I have of The Flash and another of The Tick. Good idea.

Speaking of giving and taking, I hesitated for a minute taking the ring, thinking that perhaps the taking should all be done by children. Standing at the garden, I was quickly reminded of a philosophy of accepting things that I shared in a recent kindness class. The idea is that there is no giving without someone receiving (or taking). So by taking the ring, I think I was better utilizing the garden’s main purpose. I even wrote about this idea on this blog over 5 years ago! Take a look.