by Olivia
You know, I used to walk past trees without giving them much thought. Just part of the background in a busy world. Something to easily look past. But us—we’re not so different in a sense. We're all trying to grow, to reach, to stand a little taller in a world that often makes it hard to stay upright. There’s wisdom in that truth and the silence trees carry.
Have you ever seen a tree that's been struck by lightning? Split down the middle, bark scarred, maybe even hollowed out…but still alive? Still growing? It doesn't pretend the storm never happened—it wears the wound, but it keeps reaching for the sun anyways. They still show the scars of bad memories much like how we carry the burdens of life and they still lose things–like leaves when it’s time. It’s all a metaphor that is sitting right in front of us. We hold onto so much. Old fears. Bad memories. People who left. But maybe letting go is just part of the season we’re in. Maybe it's okay to change and let things go. Trees don’t just remind me of hard truths that take us time to learn, they also remind me that not everything worth becoming happens fast. They are the type of stability some of us yearn to be for others or the idea of a content and steady life like them is calming. In reality though, yes, we are living like a tree–obviously–but if we are truly alive and humane then we would know that with life comes these scars and challenges. Then we can grow once we love those parts of ourselves and reach toward the sunlight.