Read the lyrics or “Garden” from the “I Must Be Dreaming” project from Alabama Shakes. The lyrics of “Garden” are built around a metaphor that does the heavy lifting. “If you don’t water your garden, I will / If you don’t show her you love her, I will” . It’s a direct address to a neglectful partner, a declaration that the narrator is willing to step in and do what the partner won’t . The line “Don’t think in winter / That she’ll be waiting come spring” reinforces the idea that love, like a garden, has seasons, and if you don’t tend to it, it won’t survive.