Be a Tree!

These days I am constantly reminding myself to be a tree. While it may seem unorthodox, it really is good advice, and here are a few examples why:

1) When I was in college, my vocal professor told me to be a tree when I was singing. What did she mean by that? Well (if I am remembering correctly, because it's been more than a few years), she meant for my body to mimic a tree.  My feet should be firmly planted on the ground- solid and sure- just like the roots.  But as I go higher up, my body should become more fluid and flexible- just like the branches.  If a tree's branches did not move with the wind, they would break. Likewise, you can't sing well if your torso, chest, arms, and head are rigid and tense. You need to be relaxed to allow for maximum breath capacity and other technical stuff to happen (the "other stuff" is not important now. Just know that your singing game improves dramatically if you let yourself become a tree!) 

Lesson from the trees: Stay grounded. And when the winds blow, allow yourself to bend, but not break.


2) I moved to a new place this past May.  My new home backs up to woods with a ravine and a creek. Before I decided to rent the place, I took a walk through the woods behind it. I wanted to hear what they had to say to me, and they ended up confirming what I already suspected- This was going to be where I started my new life! Here are some of the pictures I took that day:

Check out these trees!  Aren't they amazing? I especially like the one that is clinging to the side of the ravine. There are a ton more just like it.  It looks like it's about to fall over any second, but it doesn't. Those trees are holding on TIGHT. The ground is literally eroding underneath them and yet they hold fast. And what about the trees by the water? Who needs soil?  Not these guys. These trees have found a way to make it work, and they are not letting anything deter them from their mission. With apologies to my Papa Bryon (he was a forester) I don't know what specific kinds of trees these are. But in my book, I'm calling them BADASS.

Lesson from the trees: Hold your ground and don't give it up for anyone or anything. Also, where there's a will, there's a way.



3) The other day I came across this during a hike in a metro park:

Once again the trees are showing us that they can handle just about anything life throws at them. This tree encountered something early on in its life that made it drastically change its growth trajectory. But it kept on... and eventually straightened itself out again, and it's doing just fine.  And when we look at it, we don't say, "oh, this one is different... it's not as good as the others." Because that is ridiculous.  I can tell you the birds and squirrels seemed to like it just as well as any of the other trees. It is beautiful- it's just hanging out in all its wonderfulness, not giving one rat's behind what anyone thinks of it.

This reminds me of a quote from Ram Dass:
When you go out into the woods, and you look at trees, you see all these different trees. And some of them are bent, and some of them are straight, and some of them are evergreens, and some of them are whatever. And you look at the tree and you allow it. You see why it is the way it is. You sort of understand that it didn’t get enough light, and so it turned that way. And you don’t get all emotional about it. You just allow it. You appreciate the tree. The minute you get near humans, you lose all that. And you are constantly saying ‘You are too this, or I’m too this.’ That judgment mind comes in. And so I practice turning people into trees. Which means appreciating them just the way they are. (emphasis is mine)

Here's the kicker to that statement- If you're turning people into trees, don't forget to include YOURSELF into that mix too.  Which means appreciating yourself, just the way you are, right at this moment, no matter how you got here.  The past that brought you here is important only for the fact that it made you who you are today. But the past doesn't get to dictate your worthiness now and it doesn't have any bearing on the future that awaits you.  If you wouldn't judge a tree for how it looks, or what happened in its past, and if, as part of this exercise, you are considering yourself a tree, then you absolutely cannot pass judgment on yourself.  Simply accept, appreciate, and move on.

Lesson from the trees: Adapt and persevere!  Also, appreciate the beauty that is you- exactly as you were made, exactly as you are right this very moment.




4) I don't know how many albino squirrels there are in Blendon Woods, but I usually see one- no matter which part of the park I'm in.  I usually see lots of interesting things- as long as I'm quiet enough, and willing to slow down and appreciate what nature has to show me. I highly recommend watching the squirrels for a while. They are very entertaining!

Lesson from the trees: Slow down, enjoy life, and see what wonderful things happen!

So there you go.  The next time you need to give yourself a pep talk, just remember that you are a tree. A magnificent, strong, beautiful, resilient, BADASS, f'ing tree.  Then, go out and conquer the world!