A while back my sister had the opportunity to go through an old barn and take any items she wanted. She collected a few things and offered some to me. Of the items I took was an old rusted iron trough. I have no idea what it was supposed to be but I thought it was interesting and wanted it.

My usual plan would have been to use it as a planter but that was boring to me so I hung on to it for several years until I had just the right use for it.

This past summer I decided to expand my flower garden and turn it into a special place. A sanctuary where I could meditate or just sit and be grateful for all the beauty that nature provides. A natural place for the bees, butterflies and birds to eat and drink. A space where I could connect to nature and feel its power and abundance.

As I began to add more features to the garden I looked at the iron thing again and started pondering what I could use it for. At first I was thinking maybe I could incorporate it into the water feature I was adding but it didn’t fit in that plan.

As I was building the fountain though, I was going through all my rocks and that gave me the perfect idea for the iron trough.

I made it into a wishing rock container. What is a wishing rock, you ask? Well it is something I made up.

It is a rock that has a wish painted on it. I took a bunch of stones and rocks that I had collected over the years and put them in a basket. I bought some paint pens and invited everyone who came over to visit me to paint their wish on a rock and toss it into the iron trough.

I put the wishing rock trough in my flower garden so that everyone’s wishes and beautiful thoughts would grow and spread.

It was a great way to incorporate my family and friends and their hopes and dreams into my sanctuary. The perfect way to turn an old, rusted iron thing, which was pretty cool looking, into something more beautiful.

So if you ever come to my house you will find the basket and paint pens and can make a wishing rock of your own to add. I think it would be awesome if the wishing trough started to overflow with beautiful pictures, thoughts and desires. I hope that all the wishes come true and the energy of all the collective ideas feeds the garden making this space a true sanctuary for all who enter it.