ach and every day it seems that a new part of our lives is taken over by technology. Rarely are we away from the cell phone. Fax machines are now home appliances and with the internet we rarely communicate with pen and paper any more. The digital age is firmly upon us: digital watches, ovens, automobiles, stereo and the list seems endless. 

With every little thing that goes digital, we lose a fraction of the real world. What was tactile and sensual becomes cold and electronic. Many people work in isolated offices, digitization removing the human contact around the water cooler or office lunches. 

If you were to picture your life as a balance scale, the technology side is growing heavier by the day. This lopsidedness must have a counterbalance, something that is the antithesis of cold hard techno world. The answer today is clearly that the garden and nature are the consummate counterbalance. This is the reason why we are lured to these earthly activities, for they fill an intrinsic need that keeps humanity "grounded" to the most basic and essential parts of life.

This concept tells us that the creation of a garden habitat and an urban oasis amidst a desert of technology is the most natural therapy for rest and renewal. However, it's not just any garden, but one that separates us and inspires us to cultivate spiritual thought and reflection. The qualities that lead us to this garden retreat are simple problem solving, and the choice of images that reflect our individual spiritual path.

The main purpose for the sanctuary, spiritual garden, urban oasis or however you decide to describe it, is to find the counter balance for technology. Repair to your garden when life is pressing because after all, God did create a garden as the perfect environment for Adam and Eve. Perhaps this offers us a biblical mandate that promises when the world wearies and society ceases to satisfy... there is always and will forever be, the garden.