The Herb Garden by Stephen Gray 2026
My mother before she died insisted
I should have a herb garden
Something in her English soul
amid rough South Africans
Called for the tenderness of mint 5
The old scent of lavender and sage
They arrived in soggy pages of The Star
With a spade taller than herself
She dug them into my backyard
Before I was ready for them 10
A cigarette tightly in her lips
Explaining chives made life worthwhile
That is how she died in her own
Garden of sweet remembrance
Very frail then with a bucket and spade 15
The size we children used for play
Always finding the sun too hot the soil
Far too dry for the gentler herbs
Today after the long heart-stopping drought
My mother's bed of lost spices 20
Has so flourished I have cut it back
And the mint is in the crevices of fingers
The sage under my very nails
And I remember her every gesture.
, This line shows the mother’s strong will and caring
My mother before she died nature. Her insistence suggests urgency and
foresight, as if she knows her time is limited.
insisted It introduces the theme of loss early, while also
showing her desire to leave something meaningful
behind for her child.
The line shows that the idea was his mother’s, not
his own. He feels he must do it because she wants
I should have a herb him to.
garden This suggests her strong influence over him and
shows how parents guide their children, even when
the children do not yet understand why.
The phrase suggests the mother’s deep cultural
roots and upbringing.
Something in her English It implies a gentle, traditional sensibility shaped by
English customs, valuing order, refinement, and
soul nature.
This contrasts with her harsher surroundings and
explains her need for familiar comforts, like the
herb garden, to preserve her identity.
The phrase highlights the mother’s sense of being
out of place.
It contrasts her gentle, traditionally English values
with a harsher environment, suggesting cultural
amid rough South Africans
isolation.
This difference explains her desire for a herb
garden, which offers comfort, familiarity, and
softness within surroundings she experiences as
unfamiliar and unrefined.
The phrase suggests a longing for gentleness and
comfort.
Called for the tenderness Mint symbolizes softness, care, and emotional
calm, showing the mother’s need for something
of mint soothing and familiar in a harsh environment.
It reflects her sensitive nature and desire to create
warmth, nurture, and emotional balance through
the garden.
This phrase appeals to smell to suggest nostalgia
and comfort.
The old scent of lavender Lavender and sage symbolise calm, tradition, and
home.
and sage Their “old” scent links the mother to the past,
showing how memory is triggered by familiar
smells and how her presence lingers gently even
after death.
My mother before she died insisted
I should have a herb garden
Something in her English soul
amid rough South Africans
Called for the tenderness of mint 5
The old scent of lavender and sage
They arrived in soggy pages of The Star
With a spade taller than herself
She dug them into my backyard
Before I was ready for them 10
A cigarette tightly in her lips
Explaining chives made life worthwhile
That is how she died in her own
Garden of sweet remembrance
Very frail then with a bucket and spade 15
The size we children used for play
Always finding the sun too hot the soil
Far too dry for the gentler herbs
Today after the long heart-stopping drought
My mother's bed of lost spices 20
Has so flourished I have cut it back
And the mint is in the crevices of fingers
The sage under my very nails
And I remember her every gesture.
, This line shows the mother’s strong will and caring
My mother before she died nature. Her insistence suggests urgency and
foresight, as if she knows her time is limited.
insisted It introduces the theme of loss early, while also
showing her desire to leave something meaningful
behind for her child.
The line shows that the idea was his mother’s, not
his own. He feels he must do it because she wants
I should have a herb him to.
garden This suggests her strong influence over him and
shows how parents guide their children, even when
the children do not yet understand why.
The phrase suggests the mother’s deep cultural
roots and upbringing.
Something in her English It implies a gentle, traditional sensibility shaped by
English customs, valuing order, refinement, and
soul nature.
This contrasts with her harsher surroundings and
explains her need for familiar comforts, like the
herb garden, to preserve her identity.
The phrase highlights the mother’s sense of being
out of place.
It contrasts her gentle, traditionally English values
with a harsher environment, suggesting cultural
amid rough South Africans
isolation.
This difference explains her desire for a herb
garden, which offers comfort, familiarity, and
softness within surroundings she experiences as
unfamiliar and unrefined.
The phrase suggests a longing for gentleness and
comfort.
Called for the tenderness Mint symbolizes softness, care, and emotional
calm, showing the mother’s need for something
of mint soothing and familiar in a harsh environment.
It reflects her sensitive nature and desire to create
warmth, nurture, and emotional balance through
the garden.
This phrase appeals to smell to suggest nostalgia
and comfort.
The old scent of lavender Lavender and sage symbolise calm, tradition, and
home.
and sage Their “old” scent links the mother to the past,
showing how memory is triggered by familiar
smells and how her presence lingers gently even
after death.
