More Than a Garden
Finding places and groups of people that bring comfort to an individual is, and always has been, a universal human behavior. Several factors influence this behavior such as cultural background, personality type, physical abilities, personal goals, and material resources to name a few. Obviously, the same place can bring comfort to a wide range of people, but the feeling of comfort and acceptance is collective. Along with the place shaping the individual, the individual also shapes how that place is constructed over time, how the place is defined as a social process, and how the place works as a cultural and/or social location. I have found the Formal Gardens here at Miami University to be a very comforting place when I need a quiet place to relax or when I am beginning to feel overwhelmed with the pressures of life.
I haven’t talked to many people on campus who know about the Formal Gardens and perhaps it is this unknown identity that draws me. Since Oxford is my hometown, I have had exposure to places both on and off campus that many students might not know about through four years of college. I can understand how a place such as the Formal Gardens could be unobserved because it is tucked away in a slightly secluded corner of campus and most people attending Miami are in a completely new environment. However, someone could just as easily stumble across this enchanting place while walking with a friend or playing catch in the park.
To get to the gardens by car you would drive north on Patterson Avenue toward High Street and go straight through the stoplight, passing the Farmer School of Business on your right. When you see the sign for the Miami Inn on your left and Dogwood Pond on your right, you have reached your destination. Just through the tree line surrounding the pond is a place that Miami students, both past and present, should know about.
The scent of lilac mixed with roses, tulips, lavender, and fresh afternoon air floods your nostrils as you approach the Formal Gardens. Leaves on the trees slowly sway from side to side as a cool breeze blows through the air, lifting an even heavier scent of wildflowers and goodness. The lush green grass has recently been mowed by a worker on the Miami Grounds Crew, a critical part of the “Miami Machine” that almost no students have, or will ever, interact with. The strenuous maintenance of Miami’s campus is a task commonly overlooked by many people, even though it is essential to sustaining the learning environment. Students would not have the same level of ambition to go to class if they had to walk through knee-high grass and around piles of garbage everyday. But thanks to the wonderful men and women who make a living doing these jobs, we all have a well-kept setting to pursue a higher education. The Grounds Crew defines the Formal Gardens as a social process because students’ parents pay the institution thousands of dollars for tuition and other expenses. This money is then used to oil the “Miami Machine” by paying the salaries of all employees, such as the Grounds Crew.
Maintenance at the Formal Gardens is taken to the next level and the attention to detail is exceptional. A brick pathway leads you between perfectly manicured bushes and a complete color spectrum of flowers. Every patch of grass is precisely edged and the sound of birds chirping and crickets cricketing all around blends to make a peaceful harmony. Not many people go to the gardens on a daily basis but the population that can be found here consists mostly of older people, such as graduate students and some professors. This is most likely a result of the secluded location because the older population has been around Oxford longer than the undergraduate population so therefore they know about Miami’s hidden treasures.
The location next to the Farmer School of Business is kind of ironic because thousands and thousands of students have class in the FSB everyday but the Formal Gardens remains somewhat of a mystery, sitting only a block away. Just about every person I have observed here has some kind of work they are doing and this behavior demonstrates that studious and quiet activities, such as reading, is encouraged at the gardens. Every now and then an artist can be spotted diligently constructing their interpretation of the natural environment. I talked to a guy sitting on the grass under a tree named Karl (with a K) while I was walking around the gardens. He had a sketchbook with him and I learned that he is a first year graduate student studying graphic design. While talking to him I found the garden attracts both of us for many of the same reasons. Mainly, we both use it as an escape sanctuary, somewhere we can go and let our worries drift away.
This place is very calming and I particularly enjoy going there in the evening because the lighting is relaxing and the scenery is nice. Sometimes you can see the sunset through the trees, causing beams of light to shine down and illuminate the plants all around you. I usually go here when I have a reading assignment to complete and sit on this one bench that is underneath a willow tree, right next to the duck pond. Just last week when I was there I saw a fox stalking a group of ducks, but the ducks saw him at the last minute and flew away. I have found this place to be a great escape from all the hustle and bustle that is always happening in the dorm. At this place I can just focus on the task at hand and if I get a little stressed about something I have to do I can just put it down and take a walk through the gardens. I wouldn’t consider myself a tree hugger or anything, this place just helps me relax.
