The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening and healing through gardening
Instead of saving the world, Link has found a hobby
Like millions of other people around the world, I’ve been stuck at home due to the spread of COVID-19. When I’m not wallowing in the grim reality of a global pandemic, I’ve been going through my catalog of unbeaten video games.
Recently, I started playing The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, which launched last year for Nintendo Switch. I love everything about it, from the charming retro modern art style to the owl who won’t leave Link alone. As much as I love the game, however, I fear I’ll never beat it. That’s because I’ve become too preoccupied with cutting grass.
Link the horticulturist
We all know Link to be fearless, a hero of legend. He defeats evil and brings peace. But not in my world. In my world, Link has put his heroic quest on hold to explore the art of horticulture. His first task is to prune the overgrown shrubs and grassland on Koholint. It’s not much, but it’s good, honest work.
At first, I was hellbent on completing Link’s Awakening as quickly as possible, so that I could move on to the next game. (I have a huge library of unopened titles that I have yet to play.) But at some point along the way, I got…
