Nursery Rhymes for Adult Spiritual Enrichment

Mary Mary Quite Contrary

Mary Mary Quite Contrary

How does your garden grow

With silver bells and cockle shells

And pretty maids all in a row

This nursery rhyme is all about trying to make something dastardly look beautiful and appealing. Usually, gardens draw attention to themselves because of the beauty of the blossoms that sprout from the fertile earth. In this case, Mary would be all smiles to be recognized for the socially beneficial blossoms coming from her garden. Instead, the recognition Mary received was in stark contrast to the beauty she tried to achieve in her garden, and she was quite contrary and not happy at all. Contrary is a word defining the relationship between two ideas when they cannot both be true. We know a beautiful garden when we see one, but Mary's garden was growing with silver bells, cockle shells, and pretty maids. Cockle shells can be pretty because they have a one of a kind round shell, and are bilaterally symmetrical, but they are found in sandy and sheltered beaches. The presence of cockle shells is not a sign of fertile soil. The silver bells would sound nice in a garden while drawing attention to the blossoming growth, but what growth? The silver bells were drawing attention to the pretty maids standing in a row, anyone want to pick a pretty maid? Even with the cockle shells, silver bells, and pretty maids to make the garden look appealing, there is no fertile soil, no budding blossoms, and no picks that you could place in your basket to make your own. Mary's garden was not a garden at all, but a place of entrapment into a hostile environment of cravings for pretty things, money, and fleshy beauty. How does our spiritual garden grow? Are our claims of spiritual attractiveness contrary to the genuine blossoms of spiritual fruit?

Basically, Mary's garden is advertising something that doesn't exist inwardly. It's called fraud in the business sector and is sinister in the spiritual realm. I envision Mary becoming contrary as the relationship between her internal garden and external appearance was exposed. After all, to maintain a proper image, there were pretty girls, silver bells, and attractive shells adorning the territory. However, all those external ornaments misrepresented the desolation, ugliness, and out of tune condition of internal affairs. In essence, the fraudulent advertising marketed the idea that love can be had in sexuality, materialism, and a plausible tune. The contrary part manifests from the hatred of those who expose spiritual desolation, inner ugliness, and a lack of music in the soul. The impostors' cruel intentions are unmasked by, and directed at, those who have genuine acts of goodwill and kindness. The misrepresentation advertises tranquility as being a result of material fulfillment, monetary sufficiency, and sexual pleasure. However, their inner garden is desolate of the fruit of peace as meekness and gentleness wilts within them. In fact, exposure of their fraudulent message would reveal their propensity for violence, aggression, and harsh dictates. While they promise a joyful life full of goodness by having faith in their external attractions, buying what they market leaves you in despair, with sadness, and urges of evil intent. The "cockle shells" makes you spiritually desolate, the silver bell lures you into materialistic desires, and the pretty girls leave you ugly inside. Eventually, a person becomes filled with impatience towards fruitful attitudes, out of control with genuine beauty, and infested with fatal intent to those outside Mary's garden. Patience, self-control, and perseverance is sold for a price that bankrupts the inward garden, and nothing remains except a strong desire for what the silver bell calls you to.

Within us is our own personal garden that blossoms with the fruit of everything we feel, think, and do. If we show signs of being contrary, then it stems from something that is troubling to us in comparison to fruitful attitudes coming from the spiritual fruit blossoming in us. We can be open to the idea that beauty really does come from inside, or be entrapped to the belief that external appearances are most important. The entrapment is to own attractive "ornaments," money, and sexually attractive relationships, but having no interest in spiritual fruit. In fact, to criticize or otherwise mar the appealing appearances is to suggest it is not true to the barren and sandy soil that lies within. The exposure would cause impatience with your insight and incite out of control behaviors towards your genuine concern. Their intent is to put an end to the awareness that comes from a spiritually fruitful garden. Our response is to maintain patience with their pretentions, and to keep self-control when being seduced with things, money, and pleasures. In addition, persevere in the spiritual fruit that blossom in fertile soil while avoiding the "cockle shells" that lie on top of the "sandy beaches."