“Every tree has its enemy,
Few have an advocate.”
-J. R. R. Tolkien1
October 27th, 2022
Data
9 cherries still standing. Somehow the red against the apparent barrenness of the tree, along with the white of the freshly fallen snow all around, really makes these cherries stand out. They age well, not unlike the Queen when she was living her latter years. They, like she did, hold a certain beauty and dignity in their late life. They command attention without trying. When I was thinking about the cherries on the tree and not observing them (slow learner that I am), I imagined, for some reason, that they were somewhere between a deep purple and black, not to mention shriveled. I even thought I had seen them this way earlier. But upon close inspection, the only thing that was shriveled was my unbaptized imagination. Yes, they show signs of withering, but not what you’d expect. I also thought they would be hard to the touch, but they are not. They have a measure of frost on the outside, but they remain tender. The tree, on the other hand, seems to have toughened up for winter. I looked at it earlier in the day saw it differently. It didn’t appear fragile, but solid. Tough, even. Perhaps it is just the change in my perception, but tonight, upon touching it, it felt more solid. Some of the peeled bark is brittle, but not the tree. I think it’s been working out. Maybe that’s what trees do all winter.
Oh, and one more thing, there are two leaves still left too! I didn’t dare touch them.
Affect
Most of the world, contrary to what we casually think (even when we know better), is beyond our sight. My eyes tell me nothing is happening with the tree. The fool says in his heart nothing is happening with the tree. I only look outward and therefore see no change. Even this is a failure of sight because, in fact, it is changing all the time – I’m just not paying attention. I tend notice the obvious, not the intricate. Years of painstaking music transcription should have taught me better but, again, I’m a slow learner. Still, my goodness, what is going on inside this tree? What mysterious realities are happening just next to me as I write this that I remain completely oblivious to?
I really was amazed at how solid this tree seemed today. It somehow gave me hope and resolve (and tenderness too) in a week where I’ve been surrounded by the effects of heartbreaking despair (yet again). Oh God, surround those who are beat down this winter. Help them stand like this tree. Remind them in the dark that seasons do change, even if it takes far too long.
The tree is changing, and I am changing. We’re changing together. I thought I was healed, but my vision was blurred. “I see trees; they look like men walking around,” I said. Yet Jesus came, as he does, and touched my eyes and my sight is being restored. At last, I see trees.
I don’t know where the reference originally came from. It is quoted in Matthew Sleeth, Reforesting Faith: What Trees Teach Us About the Nature of God and His Love for Us (New York: Waterbrook, 2019).
*Cover Image Source: https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/216629520/winter-tree-print-on-watercolor-paper-16