Listen Garden – listengarden

"Listen" Garden

The “Listen” Garden is a place dedicated to listening, healing and creating a place of learning for future collaboration, growth and a shared path forward for all peoples.

The Bow Valley Ranche is the heart of Fish Creek Provincial Park. The historic Hull/Burns Ranche house was slated for demolition by the province of Alberta in 1994. Recognizing the sites pivotal role as a landmark in Canadian pioneer history, Larry and Mitzie Wasyliw presented a proposal to the province for healing, caring and recognition of our rich culture embodied in the storied heritage of this significant place of gathering, celebration and early ranch-life in Alberta. Through 30 years of selfless stewardship, including the restoration and historical designation of the 1896 Wiliam Roper Hull Ranche House, Annies Café revitalization, development of the Formal and Native Gardens, Artisan Garden, Poet Tree Garden and Branded Patio, the BVR has evolved over time in representing and honouring this unique culturally significant site with determination and a focus on welcoming people from all walks of life.

The “Listen” Garden is located immediately south of this much-heralded development and represents a natural extension of the spirit of preservation and restoration embodied at the “Bow Valley Ranch in Fish Creek Park” site. Larry Wasyliw and his dedicated Board of Directors, carrying on the work of he and his late wife Mitzie, are mindful stewards of cultural harmonization between the past, present and future; the land and the people; Indigenous and newcomer communities. The Garden will be a place where Native flora and fauna, Indigenous knowledge, and a spirit of harmonious personal and ecological balance come together where deep and meaningful (re)conciliation
can flourish.

The “Listen” Garden, as a place of healing, will be part of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society’s
“Seeds of Change” initiative and will be the first of its kind as a model for other such place-making across Canada. Acknowledging that the Garden is on the traditional lands of Indigenous peoples, we are guided in this effort by the wisdom of the Elders, Knowledge-Keepers, Guardians of the land and inherent connectivity of our lives, history and ecosystem. In addition to native plants, the garden will hold space for gathering, art, education, ceremony and the celebration of time-honoured traditions.

Listen to the wind, it talks. Listen to the silence, it speaks. Listen to your heart, it knows.”

Native American Proverb

Garden Significance

The “Listen” Garden holds special geographic and historic significance, as it is situated near the confluence of Fish (Wolf) Creek and the Bow River, and the traditional lands of the Treaty 7 Nations. Proximity to Tsuut’ina First Nation infuses the garden with a profound sense of place, meaningand history, honouring the deep connection that the Tsuut’ina people have with the Creator through the land.

Garden Design and Significance

The “Listen” Garden, approximately 3 acres in size, has been designed with the understanding that gardens are dynamic, always growing, and changing. The design of the garden – how we move through the space – is itself a story. Three connected circles aligned from east to west are surrounded by native trees, bushes, grasses, herbs, and other plants used for traditional ceremonies and healing.

As the Sun rises, we enter the garden from the East and are guided to the Four Directions Sculpture, which reminds us that the land comes before the people.

Seven sunbeams lead into the Sacred Buffalo Circle, where we meet the prairie’s sacred animal, our first teacher. The Buffalo are of this place and restore this place, they fertilize the ground as they migrate. Spiritually and culturally significant, they have also fed, sheltered, and clothed people here since time immemorial. In the Buffalo sculpture, the father faces North and mother faces South. The Buffalo calf, symbol of the future, faces West. This circle relates to the sun, to activity, to the life force.

A pathway in the shape of the Métis Infinity sign connects the Buffalo circle to the second circle, Listening. The infinity sign captures the constantly flowing energy between masculine and feminine, sun and moon, active and receptive. This sign represents both unity and duality. The Healing Garden is the heart of the “Listen” Garden. There is no separation between us and the land when it comes to healing. It is spiritually grounded in gratitude for all relations and relationships. The centre of this circle holds the medicine garden. Benches at the perimeter of this circle provide rest and a chance to listen, to contemplate, to reflect, and renew. Balancing Buffalo Circle, “Listen” is filled with feminine, receptive, moon energy.

As above, so below: our garden on earth is connected to the sun, moon, and stars.

The third circle is Gathering. This space is where people will gather, and where the male and female energies, where sun and moon, where action and listening, come together. This versatile space is for teaching and performance, and is where we will, for ceremonies, erect the teepee inscribed with the sun, moon, and the stars of the Seven Brothers. This is the place where stories of all people of the land will be shared, valuing and listening to the knowledge and significance of the land. Stories and verbal history are a most treasured and sacred part of the indigenous way of life.

At the Westernmost point of the Listening Garden is the Children’s Sculpture. In the shape of an arrow pointing west to the mountains, this sculpture will evoke and be dedicated to the strength ands insightful innocence of our children as leaders of the future for generations to come.

Vision for the Future

The “Listen” Garden is more than
a space; it is a vision for a future where people and the land are deeply connected. It aims to inspire all
who visit to engage in the ongoing collaborative process of reconciliation, to understand the importance of our natural environment, and to recognize the wisdom of the land’s guardians in fostering ecological balance.
As we walk through the garden, we are reminded of the cycles of life, the balance of nature, and the potential for renewal and growth. The garden is a living testament to the power of unity, respect, and understanding among diverse communities. It invites visitors to reflect on their relationship with the land and encourages them to take active steps towards healing and preserving our environment now and into the future.

By immersing ourselves in this serene and contemplative environment, we are encouraged to listen — to the whispers of the wind, the songs of the birds, and the stories of the plants. The “Listen” Garden serves as a gentle reminder that we are all part of the natural world, interconnected and interdependent.

In this sacred space, we find a sanctuary where we can reconnect with nature and each other. The garden offers a place for meditation, learning, and community gathering, promoting a sense of belonging and shared responsibility for the land. Through this shared experience, we can build a more harmonious and sustainable future for all peoples for generations to come.