The Gift of Trees

Positive Pensées

Kathy King

A tree stands tall, looking to the sky.

It’s nature’s cathedral, mighty, lofty, and high. 

Men make huge churches with massive architecture. 

Trees still outdo these man-made buildings by a huge measure. 

Stand amongst the trees and feel the wind and sway.

Sometimes those trees provide cover on rainy days.  

The trees weather storms that are truly great. 

Their roots keep them grounded as the wind swirls and sways. 

Trees can teach us lessons about daily life.

Even though trees are indeed very tall, their root system is the heart of it all.

Grow strong roots of love and honesty. 

Bring in a dose of humility. 

Do good for others in every way.

Focus on helping others. 

Look outward in a new and purposeful way. 

Find your species of tree, plant and cultivate. 

Water your spirit and root system. 

So that when the wind does cause you to sway.

You will stay grounded, strong, and immovable with each passing day.

Today my husband and I took a very beautiful walk by the lake. The wind was particularly strong during our time outside. The trees swayed, and the breeze felt wonderful as we enjoyed this particularly warm late winter day. In the south, our seasons are so weird. Particularly in the winter. One day it will be 75, and the next, 25. The phrase “Go home weather, you are drunk” applies tenfold to this little corner of the deep south. As we rambled on, I started to ponder the absolutely wonderful poem written by Joyce Kilmer in 1913. It is called, “Trees.”

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/joyce-kilmer

The opening line states, “I think that I shall never see a poem lovely as a tree.” Truer words could not have been written. One surprising revelation concerning this poem was that it was panned as overly sentimental and a bit too simple. When I read this fact, I could only react with incredulity. If you really ponder a tree and its various attributes, it is anything but simplistic. The root systems that dig through the earth to anchor the tree to the ground are simply amazing. An interesting fact about tree roots, they extend 1.5 times longer than the height of a tree. You can find some pretty amazing pictures of trees literally taking over houses if you do a quick search for tree roots. It is completely understandable why Mr. Kilmer wrote about his love of trees. You can read the whole poem here. 

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/poems/12744/trees

Recently, my family has had some difficult life changes that have really kind of thrown us for a loop. The old wives’ tale that trouble comes at you in threes is definitely impacting our lives at the moment. The winds are blowing a bit hard, it is difficult to stand up, but our roots are resilient. What constitutes resilient roots? That is for you to decide, but when life comes at you, those roots could be prayer, meditation, and a humble spirit. A time to reflect on how the situation both challenges and changes you so that you can keep growing. Water those roots with forgiveness and grace, and your tree of life will continue to bear much fruit and weather the storms, the wind, the rain, and the snow. I often reminded of the parable of the sower that Jesus spoke about in the Bible. Jesus asked the question. Are your roots strong and sowed on stable ground? Or, are they on sandy or rocky ground? When those winds blow, when the storms come. The solid ground will be your solace.  Your solid ground example could provide cover one day for someone who needs a respite from their storms.  You can read the Parable of the Sower here. 

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2013&version=NIV

I leave you all, dear readers, with one final quote: 

“To be without trees would, in the most literal way, to be without our roots.” Richard Maby  

https://richardmabey.co.uk/