Goodbye Old Friend

In the Comfort of Trees: A tribute to all trees. The song on this slide show is titled "The Trees" and is music I recently dreamed. In the dream I stood amongst towering trees that swayed with the music. They looked down at me with love so intense I wept. Shortly after I woke and recorded the song. This is the very first recording, mistakes and all. So I use this recording humbly. (Also see second video BELOW and one click petition to save endangered Sumartran Rainforest. Please take a moment and sign.)

When I as a child we had a HUGE maple in our backyard, taller than our two story house. That tree knew me and all five of my siblings and half the neighborhood children as well. I couldn't count the times I climbed that maple or the times I fell from it. Usually I fell flat on my back with the wind knocked out me. But I always climbed again. I bonded with that tree as if it were my LIFE. My brothers, my sister and I must have given the Old Maple a new name every summer. But it was always called, "The Tree".

My legs hooked around two of its lower branches while I hung upside down, long hair blowing in the wind, arms reaching for the ground, swinging loosely. Upside down like that the green lawn became the sky and the sky became the Earth. A magical perspective. There were days I sat curled in Old Maple's branches and sobbed over some childhood injustice: the day our dog, curly, died, the day my mother went into the hospital and I thought she'd never return, the day the little girl up the street drowned. Sometimes I hid between its leafy branches and ate my summer sandwiches, just to escape cleaning out the attic or garage. That elegant maple withstood years of little hands and feet clinging and climbing to its sturdy branches, right up until I left home at eighteen.

Years later I returned home to visit and that tree not only felt me, but it recognized me. I climbed into its open arms and wept, welcomed home by my most treasured friend. I'd been away a long time and Old Maple was showing signs of wear. I knew she was dying. As I climbed up through her leafy branches tears ran down my face while I said goodbye. Like a child I hid in the tree and didn't respond when Mom opened the backdoor and called my name. I didn't want to end the sweetness. I knew I'd never climb Old Maple again.

"We are taught to see the tree; we are never taught to feel the tree, its life, its energy and how we are all connected. I now view every living thing that way." ~ Janet Gardner. http://janetgardner.blogspot.com/Thank you dear Janet.I too view every living thing in this way. Janet has a heartfelt site, filled with honest emotion and much wisdom. My friends, have you shared a special bond with a tree? I'd love to hear you story.

Here is a very short video of an exquisite and threatened Sumartran Rainforest. This link http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/save-the-sumatran-forestthat will take you to a petition to help save this magnificent forest. In one click you CAN make a difference to these frightened creatures that are losing their homes. Please help by passing on this post or link, stumble, digg, etc. We must help our wild brethren; they are struggling. Thank you from my heart, Robin

SAVE THE BEAUTIFUL HARAPAN RAINFOREST:

This Site: © Robin Easton
Website: http://www.nakedineden.com Blog:http://nakedineden.com/nakedinedenblog/

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Comment by Robin Easton on March 3, 2009 at 7:07pm: Dear George W, I loved this story of your on going relationship with trees and tree houses. It really warmed my heart because I could easily see this in you the first I met you on iPeace. I also related to sitting the apple tree. We had three of them when I was kid, waaay at the back of our yeard and we would sit up there and eat wormy apples, even green apples in early spring until we had tummy aches and runs. And yet that never stopped us. My heart went out to you when touching told of your logger step son. And yet, you are so right; all you can do is let it roll and pray that he will eventually come to his own awakening at some point. To fight him at this point would only shut him down further, you are right about that also. I appreciate your sharing here and was touched by your whole sharing. I've not yet seen .Silversteens "The Giving Tree", but am going to now that you've told me about it. Also thank you for your kind words re: the music and video. I think you are right in that the music was tinged with my longing for Old Maple, still with me, always, but not something I can ever climb again. Thank you George.

Comment by Robin Easton on March 3, 2009 at 6:58pm: Dear Danielle, this is SUCH an amazing and deeply beautiful experience you have had. I love how open you are. If all the world were like you dear soul, we would live on a much greener planet. This photo is absolutely breathtaking. When I lived in the rainforest I too became the trees, merged with and heard their voces. It is sad that we are largely a culture that no longer blieves. Ancient peoples had amazing relationships with tree, just as you describe here. Always be who you are, as it is truly truly beautiful and there are those of us out here who understand and prfoundly touched by your insight, wisdom and ability to "see". Thank you dear Danielle; you are as beautiful as the trees you love. You REALLY are. .

Comment by Danielle CHABIN on February 26, 2009 at 11:53am: Hi Robin, I was very touched reading about your wonderful connecting friendship with your maple tree. I would like to share with you the deep feeling of togetherness I felt with trees. In Quebec during an amerindian morning sunrise ceremony looking at a far huge beautiful tree I connected totally with the tree, I was the tree, I felt all my leaves trembling gently in the brise, Il felt the beauty of the golden color of my leaves, the strength of my trunk, all seemed natural then I flew off the tree as a hawk. I was very moved by this beautiful experience. I was able to share it at the end of the ceremony with the small group of people whose leader was part indian. I had another beautiful sharing with a chestnut tree, in The Province of Galicia in Spain. I was on the Camino on the way to Santiago de Compostella. I was walking that day with a peregrino met at a refugio, passing by this chestnut trees field we both felt like stopping and greeting these tree and meeting each our tree. I was attracted by a huge one and ask it the permission to go and hug it. I felt it was ok. While hugging it I had the same feeling to be be one with the tree, I felt that the tree and I had the same pulse. It is a bit difficult to express the feeling, I now know that we live with the same energy. Voilà Robin ce que je voulais partager.

Comment by George Williston on February 25, 2009 at 7:17pm: Very nice piece Robin, both the photos and the music. there is a tinge of sadness to the music, maybe you were feeling that old maple from your backyard.

Comment by George Williston on February 25, 2009 at 7:12pm: Nice story Robin,
I spent a lot of time in trees as a child but I can't say I ever felt the positive relation you have. we would build a tree house and spend time in it then in a couple of years we would find another. There was one apple tree that was the main climbing tree. It was not hard to get up into and it had a huge main branch that was good for sitting on. theapples were wormy but nice to munch on. I now have a step son who is a logger, he loves to cut down trees. The bigger the better, the more thrill. He used to be a tere hugger when he was younger and more under my spell. He is always talking loudly about mashin trees, inside he knows it is not right I think that is why he is always making thee loud arguments. I do not participate in them, let them role. As a woodworker I appreciate wood that must coem from a logger but it shoudl be done with respect. Have you een Silversteens "The Giving Tree"?

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