Lost in the Garden: W. G. Sebald’s Profound Reflections on Nature

May 18, 1944

On this day, dear readers, we celebrate the birth of Winfried Georg Sebald ("Say-bald") (books by this author), who went by Max and wrote as W. G. Sebald, a German writer and academic whose profound insights into nature and humanity continue to captivate readers worldwide.

When Max departed this world at the tender age of 57, he was already regarded as one of the greatest authors of his time.

Can you imagine the literary treasures we might have enjoyed had fate granted him more years?

His 2001 novel Austerlitz was Sebald's final masterpiece, a work that garnered the prestigious National Book Critics Circle Award.

In a testament to its enduring impact, The Guardian ranked it 5th on their list of the 100 best books of the 21st century in 2019.

Allow me to share with you an excerpt from this remarkable work, one that beautifully illustrates Sebald's keen observation of the natural world and its metaphorical resonance:

In the warmer months of the year, one or other of those nocturnal insects quite often strays indoors from the small garden behind my house.

When I get up early in the morning, I find them clinging to the wall, motionless.

I believe, said Austerlitz, they know they have lost their way since if you do not put them out again carefully, they will stay where they are, never moving, until the last breath is out of their bodies.

Indeed they will remain in the place where they came to grief even after death, held fast by the tiny claws that stiffened in their last agony until a draft of air detaches them and blows them into a dusty corner.

Sometimes, seeing one of these moths that have met their end in my house, I wonder what kind of fear and pain they feel while they are lost.

Oh, what a poignant observation!

Can you not picture these delicate creatures, their fragile lives hanging in the balance, a microcosm of the human experience?

Sebald's words invite us to ponder the nature of disorientation, of being lost in an unfamiliar world.

How often do we, like these nocturnal visitors, find ourselves in situations where we cling desperately to the familiar, paralyzed by the unknown?

As we tend to our gardens, dear readers, let us remember Sebald's moths.

May we be gentle with the creatures that find their way into our homes, and may we extend that same compassion to ourselves and others when we feel lost in the vastness of life.

Until next time, may your gardens be sanctuaries for all creatures, great and small, and may Sebald's words inspire you to look at the world with renewed wonder and empathy.