I remember the first time I saw the sun.
Life had been dark and cool to that point. I was a young plant, just out of the seed. The earth around me has supplied my tiny roots with dampness to take away my thirst and nutrients to sate my growing hunger.
For days and weeks I stayed under. It was safer in my tender and fragile state. But, danger did exist. I once felt the vibrations of a mole close by and I feared it would change its way and rip me apart. The tunnel it was creating got closer and closer until, at the last moment, it veered left and just missed my strongest root. I was saved for the moment, but an immediate desire to grow more sturdy was burning within.
Finally, after much anticipation, I found the ground crumbling above. I stretched out and pushed as hard as my feeble stem would allow. I succeeded! I had broken through!
A most marvelous sight awaited. Above me was this glowing orb suspended in a beautiful blue sky. White clouds floated by as a slight breeze afforded them the power to travel great distances. The warmth of the orb and freshness of the breeze helped provide an exhilaration never before experienced as I joined my family above for the first time.
My struggle had been worth the wait, The cold, the damp, the darkness would always be a needed factor in my well being as my roots partake of food and drink. But, as important as they had been to my beginning, I knew my life had much to discover as it relished in the light of day and the upper world.
The oaks, the elms, and the pines were my brothers and friends. They gave me direction in my early years. They showed me how to cup the rain on my leaves, dig my roots deeper and deeper to fortify my upper weight, and bend with the breeze.
We were alone for the most part. Yet, danger lurked in my first Fall of the year. Hunters carelessly trampled over the saplings in their haste to kill various animals. Even the young they brought with them took no notice of most of us as they tried desperately to keep up with the older counterparts.
My leaves dried and fell to the ground, as did those of all my brothers and friends. I feared us doomed and screamed my regret of having such a short life. That was before I recognized that like the snake that crawled over my small branches, trees, too, shed their skins. Oh, we kept our bark as it would provide us protection from Winter's fury, but leaves would later replace themselves.
My first Winter was difficult. Several times I felt myself being weighed to the ground by the heavy ice and snow. However, when I was at my lowest and straining hard to stay in one piece, the sun would present itself and melt away my trials. I survived day by day with that thought in mind.
Spring arrived! As expected, my leaves returned. Each year after my birth I found more and more of them filling out the limbs that had grown even more branches. I was now stronger and more stable. I was no longer afraid of the animals or hunters that passed by.
Life was wonderful in those early years. Nothing to do but soak in the sun's brilliance, taste the sweetness of the morning dew, and drink the fresh rain that fell regularly. I grew stronger and my trunk expanded to a surprising girth. Everything was perfect!
The Tree: Phase Two
And then the humans came.
I was accustomed to the hunters. In fact, once a hunter had let loose with his long metal stick and missed the deer that stood in front of me. The piercing sting of his metal pellets entered deep inside my bark. Their bite was strong, and I must admit I lost a little sap, but I stood firm and dared him to do it again. He only walked away.
But, these humans were different. They wore shiny orange shells atop their bodies. I watched as they carried metal contraptions on legs that they would look through at other humans, move them a bit, and move them again. I saw my brothers and friends marked with red ribbons and strange markings. Yet, I was untouched except for several of them pulling some fruit seedlings from my branches to devour.
Next, the killing machines arrived. Humans carried in yellow and orange machines with teeth to take the lives of my family. One by one, their roaring signified another member was dying and would soon be taken away by the many wheeled vehicles. No matter how hard I screamed for the humans to stop, the sound of the machines were louder than my pleadings.
I remained untouched.
Then, the big machines arrived. They pushed and pulled the remaining trunks and, without mercy, ripped the roots from the ground. One even backed into me. I stood strong, refusing to give way to its hunger for violence. In fact, I dropped some of my fruit seedlings on the human in charge of the machine, but his orange top protected him. I watched him later collect my fruit seedlings as he left that evening.
Finally, after many weeks, the damage was complete. The machines had taken all of my family and friends, stolen the grass and bushes leaving only bare earth, and even scattered away the animals. I could see just one other survivor about a mile down the hill. We stood alone where many had once thrived. Loneliness was our only companion.
Then, more men arrived. They started pouring out a gray liquid that hardened overnight. Strings, sticks and ribbons marked the borders they worked within. Slowly the view I had cherished disappeared as these human made structures grew higher and higher. I couldn't even see the one tree like myself anymore. I was truly alone.
The dust from the stripped earth was suffocating. It clogged my leaves and dried my bark. When it finally rained, I tried to enjoy it. But, with the grass and plant life no longer there, the loose soil quickly turned to mud. That was when I began to worry as my roots had little to grab onto. The support to my massive stance was loosening. I held on, hoping for a miracle. It was only my will that kept me standing.
The gray liquid that hardened overnight was again being poured from the vehicles. It was formed into long flat strips that the humans drove their vehicles on, and smaller versions of the same for them to walk upon.
Men, with new offerings of greenery on their vehicles, planted them in fertilized patches. Later, they laid down square patches of grass atop the exposed soil. I didn't understand why they would strip grass from the earth to put down new grass. The humans never made much sense anyway.
Fear returned as they cut away some of my branches. My efforts to resist their machines failed as they bit too hard. I cried sap where the branches had been. However, in a couple of days, I no longer felt the pain.
In the weeks ahead, I began to feel ill. My strength was ebbing and holding up my fruit seedlings took all my strength. After a couple of weeks, different humans came and examined me. They injected the earth around my roots with some liquid that immediately brought back feelings of vitality.
The Tree: The Answer
This act made me wonder. "Do these creatures care about me? Why did they not take me with my fallen brothers on the big vehicles? What makes me so special? Of what use could I be to them?"
Then, my revelation appeared."These humans love my fruit seedlings!"
They gather those that I drop on purpose, as well as, take the ripe fruit seedlings off my branches. I have seen them give them to each other and walk away hand in hand. I even watched several gather the seeds from them and plant them close by.
I'll keep producing fruit seedlings for them. This simple act may continue to keep me alive. And one day, I may again have a brother to talk to!
How About You?
We all begin life the same. It's out of womb and into the crib. As we grow, we find others from which to learn. We quickly find there's safety as a group.
As we age, these friends slowly slip away and we enter a dangerous world. Only now, we do it alone. How do we survive?
We have to see the sanity. We must keep ourselves from becoming cynical. We must not give up! Daily challenges are only that...challenges! We either conquer them or they conquer us. Either way, new challenges await the next day.
You can stand tall and majestic through your actions and efforts. It's the fruit of your brain that can change how you view the world in which you exist, and maybe even change that world.
As this is the case, everybody has something to offer!
What do you have?
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