I talked to a tree today.
I know I probably sound crazy to you right now, but I talked to a tree, and I heard it talk back.
To fully understand this story, you must rewind through my life to take a glance at these precious trees.
When I was a child, I would sit in my favorite loquat tree outside my home and sing songs among the birds. It was my favorite hiding spot. It was my place to get away.
There was something so comforting and silently gentle about that tree. Like it was raising me along side my parents.
As I got older, I forgot about my favorite tree and began ignoring or not paying attention to trees for a very long time.
I forgot their calming nature, and I forgot their strength.
Until one night, when in the middle of the night I was woken up by loud crashing noise.
It had been a stormy night with lightening and thunder. In the morning we were able to see what had happened.
The lightening had struck one of the largest trees in our back garden and sliced it down the middle. The tree was torn in two parts, lying like a dead body across the grass.
When I saw it I instantly felt the pain of that tree and how its strength had been stripped away.
As I got older I pushed the trees back to the back of my mind. Even though I still felt a strange draw to trees (always painting trees, or photographing trees).
I went through a dark time, and began on a road to self discovery. Slowly, like the trees do from winter into spring, I began to blossom on bloom.
Coming into this spiritual journey I first began thinking about my roots, my background. I started questioning: who am I? Where am I from?
This led me to believe I needed to build my backbone and become stronger as an individual. I started practicing yoga and improving my diet, but I still didn’t feel like I was fully taking my spiritual path.
Little did I know that every step I was taking was moving me in the right direction.
Every moment, good or bad, prepares us all for where we are meant to be.
Until this year when I decided to learn reiki, an ancient Japanese healing technique.
My reiki master told me I needed to visualize my roots, to learn how to connect with the earth like a tree, yet stand steady and tall.
This weekend, as I was going through my belongings I came across a book on Qigong, an ancient Chinese energy healing, that I had purchased many years ago but never read. I flipped through the pages and landed on the perfect page.
The instructions were as follows:
Go outside and find a tall, strong, healthy tree.
Approach the tree, humbly, silently, and with respect.
Imagine and feel the energy of the tree flowing from the roots to the tips of the tallest branch.
Reach out to the tree and imagine the energy of the tree flowing through the crown on your head and down towards your feet, then back up the roots of the tree.
Do this for several minutes.
So today I found the perfect tree. And I knew I must have looked like total weirdo, but I followed the above guidelines, except I placed my hand on one of the tree branches.
All of a sudden I felt a strong sense of calm and peace come over me.
The tree didn’t say words but I understood its message:
Stand strong and tall. Stay grounded, stay rooted. Sway with the breeze, go with the flow, but stay true to yourself, don’t be uprooted by others. Keep calm, create a sense of peaceful bliss in your surroundings.
So wise.
If you ever get the chance to listen to the trees, and feel their wisdom, I hope you will talk to them too.
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