Friday, March 30, 2012

In Memory of Arienne Rich

In times like these to have you listen at all it's necessary to talk about trees.

Trees are the most amazing things.  Oddly enough, I went on a giant tree rant yesterday.  Why not do it again?

Do you realize how amazing and incredible trees are?  I don't even know where to begin and I'm not even a specialist so my knowledge is minimal!

They start as a tiny seed and then grow using nothing but water and the nutrients in the soil.   Once they  emerge they also use the sunlight and air to grow.  They grow down and up AT THE SAME TIME!!!!  WOW!  Not only that, but the WAY they grow!  The branches grow constantly upwards many with the Fibonacci sequence!  Which is pretty cool.

A tree, if it's trunk is damaged, can actually heal itself over time!  If a chunk of the bark goes missing or a hole is carved out it can start growing back together and cover the hole!  It can do the same with branches, although sometimes they need help to be tied back close to the tree.  All this with no help, no fertilizers, no pesticides, no irrigation.

Trees grow leaves and FRUIT or NUTS which humans and animals can eat, can become seeds to grow into new trees and can add nutrients to the soil so they can grow better!  They also make maple syrup!!!!! mmmm. 

They provide homes to animals and birds and insects.  They make Oxygen from Carbon dioxide and help to regulate the temperature of the earth and the quality of the air.

They are absolutely incredible.  Much more so than anything humans have created thus far.  We take them for granted as decorations in our gardens or on our streets.  We categorize them as different types or under a common heading as "trees" or "part of the environment" which is so vast and diverse and deserves to be looked at more individually.  We have taken the wonder and the beauty out of trees by cutting them down and turning them into cold, straight edges and surfaces.  Seeing them as nothing more than their material usefulness to us.  Each tree has it's own character, it's own story, it's own history.  Each tree grows differently and has it's own pattern and shape.  Each is intrinsically linked to the environment around it, gives to it and nourishes it.  Trees understand that their health and the health of the world around it are one and the same and they are designed to perpetuate a healthy relationship as it's in their own best interest.

We can learn a lot from trees.

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