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| In the August 2014 Southern Tidings I read an article last weekend (I'm just a little behind in reading these monthly magazines) entitled "Serenity in Miniature" by Betty Kossick (the mother of an academy classmate of mine). It told about "The Garden," a volunteer-built serenity retreat behind the Calhoun, GA SDA church. There are more than 50 "structures crafted from tiny stones, pebbles, shells, pieces of glass, rocks, ceramic tile, cement, wire, and other materials to imitate their larger counterparts." There are churches, houses, a castle, and a monastery. There are structures modeled after Notre Dame in Paris, Cinderella's castle, Dover Castle, and Bethlehem. Some are as high as 9 feet tall. (Bethlehem above and below) |
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| Linda by Cinderella's castle |
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| part of a seaport village alongside a creek |
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| next to the replica of Notre Dame that stands 9-ft. |
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| I loved the stained glass windows |
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| The garden was started by two Calhoun church members and now many others are helping with the ongoing construction. |
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| There are little roads resembling cobblestone with Bible verses etched in stone |
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| Notice the white shells covering the roof of this monastery |
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| "Think 'Europe on a small scale' to envision these works of art." |
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| more shells used in the structures |
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| Dainty violets and other flowers were already planted through the gardens. |
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| winding steps going around this tower |
I was happy that Linda Kwan was here visiting to go see it with me just a couple days after I "discovered" it. It surely must be one of Calhoun's best kept secrets. I'm thankful Betty Kossick wrote the article that I finally found. It was worth the trip to be sure.
We topped the morning off with lunch at an SDA-owned sandwich shop called Christian and Jake's Bistro (thank you Connie H. for telling me about it). They have a whole page of vegetarian options on their menu and the place was hopping. I would definitely go again.
