All my life I have been fascinated by the simple beauty of the garden, a sacred space where what is planted and nurtured today will bloom tomorrow in beauty and grace. I have cultivated gardens of many kinds in my lifetime, but none as wondrous as the one I learned to grow in Houston. It began, of all places, in a hospital room.

Seeking a meaningful volunteer opportunity, I became a lay minister at The Methodist Hospital in Houston’s renowned Medical Center. Here, I was trained to cultivate a garden of hope and healing. By employing prayer and listening, I created a compassionate and nonjudgmental “safe space” where critically ill people began sharing their stories with me, including powerful testimonies of their encounters with the Divine.

The profound healing I witnessed as hearts and tears were shared over the next four years inspired me to open the door to my own deeply personal experiences and encounters, through the pages of this book. As you step into this wondrous garden of hope and healing, I hope that you will be encouraged to share your own stories… and feel God’s presence in your life. Heaven, I have learned, is truly closer than you think.