The tenacity of trees

I found this quote in a fascinating little book stuffed with information about the role trees have played in humankind's spiritual life.

Called Sacred Trees by Nathaniel Altman, the book quotes Henry Turner Bailey (p. 3) who wrote in 1925:

"Ideals seem to be held tenaciously by trees... Thwarted by unfortunate conditions, lashed by storms, struck by lightning, the spirit of the tree is never broken. As long as the tree lives it is loyal to the highest ideals of its ancestors, maintained through countless generations."

my tulip poplars at dawn

How wonderful to have the tenacity of trees, to withstand the storms and uncertainties and losses that come our way.

What the quote doesn't tell us (though I am seeking out the book to see if Bailey does), is how trees do that.

To my mind - in several ways:

• sending roots deep into the earth; 
• grounding themselves in something greater than they, something from before they came to be and of which they will become an intimate part in time to come;
• staking out a place of their own - claiming just enough space to thrive but...
• ... making common cause with and becoming a part of the greater community just beyond;
• growing around others so there is room for all;
• bending so they don't break;
• shedding what isn't working anymore;
• fearing not the heights, nor the cold;
• standing stalwart against the loneliness, exposure, the dark;
• welcoming others (animals, lichens, mosses, insects) who have chosen them as places to hide, nest, rest and share
• being proud but not pompous; 
• being noticeable but not imposing...

You no doubt can add to this list.

Good lessons to remind ourselves of. Surrounding us always.

Enduring gifts that don't take up space

As a new year of gift-giving begins, one resolution we can make is to give gifts of meaning that offer enduring benefits, strengthen loving bonds, don't take up space and don't end up in landfills. Who could ask for more?

And yet I often struggle to find the right gift with these characteristics.

Luckily, I found a website to help with that: sokindregistry

It cleverly offers gift ideas in categories such as:

• gifts of experience (tickets, events, entry passes...)
• gifts of time and skills (lessons, baby-sitting, canning, cleaning...)
• gifts of charity (of course!)
• handmade gifts  (meals, recipe books, art, knitted clothing...)
• second- use gifts  (toys, pocketbooks, a favorite scarf...)
• and of course we would add: gifts of trees!

The site doesn't sell these gifts! But it does offer you a place to register your ideas for gifts so your friends can know what to give you. Or ideas that can at least spark their imagination for gift ideas of their own.

Chances are these will be more memorable than many tangible gifts you give.

And with Tu B'shvat coming upon January 16, do think of gifts that keep on giving: trees.

While all trees are great to plant, if you want to plant fruit trees on this holiday of fruit trees, think of the Baltimore Orchard Project!

(This blog was not meant to be cross-promotional, but how lovely that it worked out that way!)

Enjoy!

Mobilizing to limit fracking - join the call on Friday

Dear Friends,

I just received this notice about this conference call coming up on Friday - Cove Point is not just one spot in the fracking wars. It is a leading indicator of how things will go. If we can hold the line here, we can help tip the movement away from more fossil fuels to the clean, renewable future we need. Please join the call if you can:

If you are concerned about the growth of fracking – in the Marcellus Shale and elsewhere – then I strongly encourage you to jump on a conference call this Friday at 2 pm EST with Bill McKibben of 350.org <http://350.org> and Mike Tidwell of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network. The call will focus on the Obama Administration’s efforts to fast track the export of liquefied natural gas from U.S. fracking production. An early test case of this newest dirty energy export push is at a place called Cove Point, Maryland just 65 miles from the White House on the shore of the Chesapeake Bay. 

Cove Point is the linchpin of the gas industry’s radical plan to send trillions of cubic feet of fracked Marcellus gas to Europe and Asia. Please join Friday’s conference call to learn how you and your group can join the regional and national fight against Cove Point. Time is running out to stop this export terminal, but great progress has been made in recent months and new opportunities are emerging. But we need your help.

DETAILS: 

WHAT: Conference call on efforts to stop the Cove Point LNG mega-export facility for fracked Marcellus Shale gas

WHEN: Friday January 10th at 2 pm EST--1 pm Central--noon Mountain--11 am Pacific 

SPEAKERS: Bill McKibben and Mike Tidwell

CALL IN NUMBER: 530-881-1300  

CODE: 703226

MORE BACKGROUND: If built, the Cove Point export terminal in Maryland would dramatically increase fracking and the build-out of fracking infrastructure in and adjacent to the Marcellus Shale region. It would make it more difficult to maintain the existing drilling moratoria on fracking in New York, the Delaware River Basin and Maryland. It would make it effectively impossible for Maryland to meet the greenhouse gas emissions reductions targets mandated by state legislation passed in 2009. And, if built, it would make it harder to prevent the approval of many of the other 20 or more proposed gas export terminals around the country.

On the other hand, if we win a victory at Cove Point and prevent construction, it will be a big win for the movement for clean air and water and a rapid shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. As an alternative to Cove Point, Maryland groups are demanding the state general assembly pass a radical RPS of 40 percent wind and solar power in the state by 2025. This would create many, many more jobs than fracking and gas exports. 

You can learn more about this campaign at http://stopcovepoint.org