snow dance

 

The photo is my brother's photograph of snow in Washington state. 

The list on the left, written in pencil, is the describing words I chose for our outdoor exercise 

The poem on the right is what I did with them. :)

Hesse's "on What Trees Teach Us About Belonging and Life" instantly brought me back to the second grade, where I vividly remember learning about the teachings of tree roots and inner rings.  I remember finding it fascinating that you can learn how old a tree is from their annual rings - Hesse's article amplifies this fascination because he gives meaning to the information trees share with us.  A tree's age represents "[the tree] fulfill[ing] themselves according to their own laws, to build up their own form, to represent themselves". The rings not only represent age, but the tree's struggles, scars, happiness, and prosperity. 

Patagonia's "Treeline" coincides perfectly with Hesse's appreciation for trees, beginning with the first line "what is a tree?".  The interviewees laugh at this question because, as Hesse evidently agrees with, trees are so much more than what the human eye perceives.  Trees are evolutionary winners, as their survival relies on endurance and strength.