Article April 24, 2000 Issue

Don't block the fountain

Clearing out worry and fear leads to healing.

By Don G. Soule

WHILE TAKING A WALK some time ago, I ventured into a neighborhood that was new to me. A number of large houses sat well back from the street, one of which had been vacant for a long time. There was a For Sale sign on it, so I decided to investigate the grounds. In the midst of an overgrown garden was a beautiful fountain. Shrubs and bushes covered it, and moss and dead leaves choked the flow of water from it. Yet a trace of water was dripping from a stone cherub.

Since I had nothing in particular that I needed to do, I set about cleaning the fountain. As I worked, the hope that birds might soon be able to bathe in the fountain and drink from the bubbling cherub hastened my efforts. And eventually I'd cleared away enough muck and debris so that a modest stream began to fill the basin. To my surprise, when I looked up from my work, nearly three hours had passed. I washed my hands in the now clear water and left. The benefit the birds would receive from my efforts and any inspiration those seeing the restored fountain might gain were more than enough reward for me to have cleaned it.

As I walked back to my neighborhood, though, I found another reward in thinking about how much life is like that fountain.

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