An inuksuk is a man-made stone landmark or cairn, used by the Inuit, Inupiat, Kalaallit, Yupik, and other peoples of the Arctic region of North America, from Alaska to Greenland. This region, above the Arctic Circle, is dominated by the tundra biome, containing areas with few natural landmarks. It has become common practice for non-inuit peoples to erect these as ornaments or landscaping. They are now seen throughout Canada along the sides of highways and in gardens. Loosely translated, it means "the people were here".

Garden Magic

This is the garden's magic,

That through the sunny hours

The gardener who tends it, Himself outgrows his flowers.

He grows by gift of patience,

Since he who sows must know

That only in the Lord's good time

Does any seedling grow.

He learns from buds unfolding,

From each tight leaf unfurled,

That his own heart, expanding,

Is one with all the world.

He bares his head to sunshine,

His bending back a sign

Of grace, and ev'ry shower becomes

His sacramental wine.

And when at last his labors

Bring forth the very stuff

And substance of all beauty

This is reward enough.

-MARIE NETTLETON CARROLL