Yesterday evening I lay on my bed, exhausted.
I watched out my bedroom window, as the last of the day's light sank behind my neighbour's tiled roof.
A tree stands at the side of my house. As I watched the sky, the growing darkness, I watched the leaves and finer branches sway, dance and lift and bend against the gentle force of the breeze.
CC, one of my cats, had came up on my bed with me, and now was curling up against me, occasionally "making biscuits" against my tummy, being gentle with her claws.
She was beginning to settle, her breathing changed and I knew she would be asleep soon.
I continued to watch out my window, as my blinks became longer, my eyes wanting to rest along with my body.
My mind began to wander, and I thought about all those disasters in recent weeks and months; mines collapsing, cyclones, floods and earthquakes.
My neighbour's tiled roof is solid and does not give to the breeze, but a strong wind will dislodge those tiles.
However, the tree is stoic, and yet accepting of the forces around it. The wind would have to be much greater in order to dislodge that tree.
Faced with a force which could damage it, the tree bends it's branches, allows it's green leaves to dance in the face of possible death...and it lives to see another beautiful day on Earth.
I would like to be more like that tree, remaining stoic, but being flexible enough to dance, sway and bend when challenged. A sure way to weather any storm.
Food for thought - The oldest living tree on Earth is said to live in Sweden, with a root system over 9,550 years old.
2 comments:
I can't remember the quote exactly but there is something Darwin said about evolution: 'not beauty, not cleverness but adaptability is what helps us survive.' It just came to mind when I was reading this post. Beautiful writing.
Thank you. Yes, I think Darwin was a sharp cookie to make the observations he did.
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