Symbiotic

I love trees! Not sure when this first began, but as a young girl I loved climbing a large sycamore tree in my backyard. I could climb the red-wood fence on which one of the lower branches rested. Attaining that branch, I could access the whole tree. I remember leaning my back against the tree trunk perched on a limb above the ground. I was one with the tree and my surroundings. It’s hard to find that kind of peace as an adult.

I think my tree climbing days are over, but I do have a couple large sycamore trees in my backyard now. I sorrowed when the last wind-storm took off a large piece from the top of the tree. Now it is mostly growing out instead of up.

During a trip to San Francisco several years ago, we went to Muir Woods, an ancient redwood forest. There is nothing on earth like a redwood forest. It has the feeling of a great temple with a lofty ceiling of branches. The quiet presses upon your ears, and you can feel the spirits of these venerable trees. There is wisdom there from many years living on earth. There is peace. It was amazing!

I have since learned more about trees and their inter-connectedness from one generation to the next. And the symbiotic relationship they have with everything in the forest. In “The Hidden Life of Trees,” by Peter Wohlleben, he says:

“A tree can only be as strong as the forest that surrounds it… Their well-being depends on their community…because they know this intuitively, they do not hesitate to help each other out.” We can learn a lot from trees.

Photo by Rebecca Asryan on Unsplash