Natural Endings & Lessons from Trees
I’ve always loved the idea that acorns don’t need to strive to become trees. Nor flowers to bloom. This has allowed me to believe that I can bloom (given the right conditions) wherever I’m planted. But I’m learning that in the natural world, that’s not necessarily true. Nature doesn’t get to “skip out” on the struggle just because it knows what to do. In fact, it seems to count on the fact that there will inevitably be some failures. Perhaps this is an idea that you and I can embrace as well.
A mother tree (yes that’s a thing) produces hundreds of acorns in a season. Most of these end up in the bellies of squirrels and birds. And when they fall into fertile ground and grow into saplings, that doesn’t necessarily mean they will survive. Many saplings end up feeding deer and never make it to young tree status. There are many reasons why a tree might not grow to maturity. In fact, many mother trees see only one of their babies grow to mature trees in their lifetime (which can be thousands of years). We’ve got way less time than the trees, so what’s the lesson here?
I’ve planted alot acorns in my life. Some (like that dream career of becoming a fashion photographer) never went past the seed stage. Others (like my career as a humanitarian storyteller) grew into a strong, young sapling before the wild animals (in my case disillusionment and frustration about the way aid works) nibbled it to the ground. It can be frustrating to see how much work it took to make that little sapling grow, only to eventually wither at the root.
I was recently walking in Milan’s botanical garden and came across a large old stump next to a medium size tree. I stooped down to read the placard and learned that the original tree had gotten ill and had to be cut down. What a sad fate for this gorgeous old tree. What a sad fate for me too. In reality, I guess no tree is meant to live forever.
But that’s not the end of the story. After a while, another branch began to grow beside this stump, which ultimately grew into the medium-sized tree that I can see today. This was not the baby of this tree, but the old root system of the existing tree deciding to grow again as something new.
What if instead of seeing everything we started to grow as a failure, we start to see it as the roots of next big idea? What if we normalize cutting down the trees that don’t serve us anything longer instead of “toughing it out” and “adulting”? By failing at something, perhaps we are just making room for another tree to grow alongside all of our past hopes and dreams. And all of the skills we mastered and all the lessons we learned will serve us as move on to the next thing.
Here’s how this “seed” of an idea is playing out for me in real life. Since 2020, I’ve struggled with being unable to continue in a career that I’d put lots of effort into. Giving up being a humanitarian storyteller required that I release certain identities that had previously defined me. I had to take responsibility for my work in a career that often took stories from people and sometimes reenacted systems of injustice under the guise of humanitarianism. I came to see that it was not just the systems that were the problem. I was part of it as well. I benefited from the system.
The earth around me has been lying fallow for a while now. But I’ve noticed a few sticks of my own stick poking their head up from the dirt. A new tree is rising from my roots in writing, storytelling, and participatory editing. I’ve started working as a structural story editor with some beautiful humans. I’m learning to say yes to projects that spark a hum in my belly and let go of doing “important” work. I’m practicing making space for rest, joy, and ease. It’s too soon to tell how this particular stick will grow. But it’s almost like the trees are giving me reassurance that struggle is just a normal part of the process.
I hope that this acorn of an idea can take hold in your own life. If you’ve cut down a tree in your life (a career, a relationship, a home), something new and wonderful can still grow from the roots of your talent and experiences.
Reading Recommendations
They say that all books come from other books. This blog definitely comes from them as well. Everything I write is informed by what I’m reading at the moment. Check out some of my current favorite reads for yourself!
