Spice of Life | Balcony garden, a parallel reality to escape the chaos

Over time, this balcony has blurred the line between inside and outside, between reality and reflection. This space isn’t just a part of my home; it shows who I am and what I value.

In the midst of the city’s relentless cacophony, I’ve carved out a patch of serenity — not in a backyard, but on my balcony. It began as a modest attempt to bring some green into a life dominated by concrete monstrosities. A few pots, a couple of flowering plants, a creeper for the railing. But slowly, almost secretly, it grew — not just in size but in significance. Today, my balcony garden has become more than a space. It is an alternate world, a parallel reality I escape into — where time sheds its cosmic urgency and silence becomes my sensory tool.

The garden, in its own way, teaches me patience. It follows its rhythm, its seasons. (Representational image)

Each morning, I step into the verandah and enter a surreal world awash with the kaleidoscopic hues of blooming flowers. The moment I open the door, a wave of freshness rushes in, cool, clean and all-pervading. The rustle of leaves, the flitting of birds, the scent of marigolds and roses, these elemental experiences transport me to another realm, far from the noise and the tyranny of screens and WhatsApp messages.

The garden, in its own way, teaches me patience. It follows its rhythm, its seasons. The sight of a hibiscus bud and a red rose blooming after weeks feels like poetry in motion. The languid sprawl of an aloe vera plant, and the creeping calm of a money plant along the grill whisper a lesson in persistence. The dry leaves and drifting petals quietly echo life’s cycle, where every end makes room for a beginning.

While the world rushes on, my balcony garden remains a rare haven of calm. The plants do not trumpet their presence to win human attention — we are simply drawn to them, as if by some quiet gravity. In their silence, they teach that life need not be loud to be meaningful, nor ruled by ego to be full.

This, then, is my alternate world, one that lets me bounce free from the pull of mundanity and immerse myself in a space steeped in greenery.

mukherjee.dashing@gmail.com

The writer is a Delhi-based freelance journalist