You are a garden locked up, my sister, my bride; you are a spring enclosed, a sealed fountain. (Song of Songs 4:12)

The Lover compares his Beloved to a garden locked: her beauty hidden, her care neglected, her potential lost - or at least dormant and waiting.

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett has had a powerful influence on my life. It is a story of how death, despair, and neglect nearly destroyed a household's potential for beauty, joy, and love.

In the story this potential is reclaimed by being curious, clearing away what is dead, digging in the dirt, and waiting for the sun and rain to release what is hidden.

The Beloved is locked up - the Hebrew is na'al - which means to be enclosed or shut-up, but also means to be given sandals (which enclose the feet).

If we will recognize what has been shut-up, its opening may be precisely what is needed to begin our journey.

Above is from the Rothschild Canticles. The Sponsa (Beloved) is sealed within a fortress battling various demons. Two women in flanking towers hail Christ appearing out of the sun.