The Garden: Cultivation of Belonging Space

Rabia's poetry often invokes gardens as spaces of intimacy with the Divine. For found families in diaspora—often living in hostile or transient housing situations—the deliberate cultivation of belonging space becomes essential spiritual practice. This might mean a small shared garden, a decorated communal room, a regular gathering place, or even a digital space that feels like home. These spaces require intentional care, regular maintenance, and protection from incursion—just like gardens. Within them, found family members can rest, celebrate, grieve, and plan together. The garden metaphor reframes space-making as sacred work. It acknowledges that diaspora families, lacking inherited land or generational homes, must actively cultivate spaces of belonging. This concept honors the creative resourcefulness of diaspora communities in building home where no home awaited them.