I sit with them again, like I do most days. A blanket of grass spreads itself out as a cushion beneath a sky heavy with possibilities. The light is wild and lavish with its warmth. Living things of all shapes and sizes and colors are my companions.
Then, just like that, the sun is gone. Light and movement disappear. Clouds billow and swell like balloons. Not a drop of water falls, for the clouds do not come to bring rain right now. They come to hover.
I look to the left. There stands a tree.
Innocent and alone, but still reaching up... its branches spread like fingers as if to say, “This is me! I am here and I am always grand.” It seems proud to be what it is. There is a sense of contentment in its structure. No striving to copy its neighbors. I am grateful for it.
Dear Tree,
Thank you for being an example of contentment. I see the ease with which you stand, unafraid and unashamed of your stature. Your place on this earth is fixed. You did not choose it, and you cannot escape it. You manage to prosper, despite not having much of a say in anything. Perhaps this is why blessing is compared to trees bearing fruit in all seasons. You keep blooming where you are planted. I would like to be like that. It is quite a marvelous thing that you have stood the test of time and storms and humans.
I like to think that in the far, far future, when this world is both gone and re-made, that you will get to be re-born. I like to think that you will have a place then, and that you will not suffer from blight, or ice storms, or man-made devices created to destroy your race. I would love for you to participate in the more perfect future that is to come, where your fullness is realized.
Love,
Me
Happy Earth Day, People of Earth. Get outside more. Pay attention to plants. Take walks. Watch the sky. Listen to the voice of nature. See the shadows, the fingerprints, the zaniness, the closeness of God. Steward it as best you can.
Beautiful writing, Jessica, throughout both this post and the others you have contributed so far. I hope that you soon achieve your goal to be stronger and softer "like toilet paper."
Posted by: Dan B | May 30, 2019 at 01:57 PM