Waiting in Beauty

Waiting in Beauty. 3-4 Garden. , You are standing before San-shi-en, or 3-4 Garden. Water once flowed over these silent stones, soothing troubled spirits and easing the monotony of long mealtime lines. Designed and built by internees, mess hall gardens served as a source of block identity and pride. , , This and other gardens in Blocks 9, 12, and 22, share symbolic roots in ancient Japanese design. In each, you will find three distinct levels aligned north to south: a hill of earth represents the mountains from which water flows south to a pond, symbolizing an ocean or lake. Here, internees planted trees from the camp nursery and hauled stones from the rugged Inyo Mountains to the east. , , As you walk around the garden, look for the crane and turtle rocks. Found together, they are said to ensure ageless vitality. , , Unearthing the Gardens , This pond was buried by sand and sediment for fifty years, until National Park Service archeologists unearthed it in 1999. They later excavated a mess hall root cellar to your left, reconstructed the historic fence, secured stones, and repaired and extended the mess hall sidewalk. , , "Six months ago Manzanar was a barren, uninhabited desert. Today, green lawns, picturesque gardens with miniature mountains, stone lanterns, bridges over ponds where carp play, and other original, decorative ideas attest to the Japanese people's traditional love of nature and ingenuity in reproducing beauty in miniature." , - "Best Garden Contest" Manzanar Free Press, Fall 1942.