Loving Trees Especially in Autumn

Loving Trees Especially in AutumnI fell in love with trees at an early age. Even today as I gaze upwards, watching branches sway in the breeze, I wonder if trees could talk what stories they would tell as they watched generations of children grow up under their boughs. The majesty of centuries old trees symbolizes longevity and continuity of life.

For someone who grew up spending summers in the Northwoods of Wisconsin, I should be more knowledgeable about trees. Though I can distinguish a birch from a maple, I had no idea the number of species of each: maples –Amur, black, mountain, Norway, red, silver, striped, and sugar; birch – heart leaved, paper, river, weeping, and yellow.

My oh my… ash, beech, elm, locust, oak…sumac, sycamore, walnut, willow there is a tree for nearly every letter in the alphabet and every fruit on the planet –apple, cherry, peach, pear and plum. I am not sure I could identify ONE hawthorn; yet, there are 17 different kinds. Not to mention dozens of different kinds of needled trees like balsam, cedar, hemlock, pine and spruce à go go.

How did I not know this?

Like most people I take trees for granted most of the time, expecting them to shade me in hot, sultry summers and dazzle me with colors in the fall. Perhaps, because of their abundance when I was a child, I overlooked their value.

As an adult my appreciation for trees grew even greater especially when I lived in cities. In Paris, carefully pruned majestic trees lined parks and boulevards, but they rarely grew in the overpopulated apartment blocks where I started raising my family. Even now in Switzerland, trees flourish in the foothills of the mountains, but in urban areas they are more limited.

Loving Trees Especially in AutumnNowhere do trees grow more densely than in the upper Midwest in the forests of Wisconsin and Minnesota. Nowhere is autumn’s festival of colors more brilliant. The soft blending of red, orange, and gold reflected on a lake in autumn looks like an impressionist painting.

No matter where you live taking time to admire the trees is good for you. Europeans have always appreciated health benefits of walking. When I lived in Germany with my college age friends, we used to go spazieren gehen in the woods near our apartments. In France, a Sunday walk through the parks is also a favorite tradition.Loving Trees Especially in Autumn

Now researchers tout facts that I’ve known for years: walking in nature is good for your health. I have always turned to the trees for solace.

Of course, there is a slight downside to being a tree owner. Homeowners are tasked with burden raking leaves. The pull, turn, and twist movement is not good for a bad back, but on a crisp, sunny fall day with leaves twirling all around, floating to the ground, the beauty of nature makes the work worth the effort.

What about you?

Loving Trees Especially in Autumn

Have you slowed down long enough to hug a tree today?

Posted in inspiration.

4 Comments

  1. Pat, I couldn’t agree with you more. Your beautiful photos and descriptions took me right back to the Wisconsin woods I roamed.. St Croix Falls comes to mind. Having grown up in northeast NY State, I have always loved trees, especially in the autumn. And now I am living happily in the woods in the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains surrounded by all those varieties of trees you mention though I couldn’t name them. Thank you for a lovely post, my friend.

    • Oh yes, I could have mentioned the beauty of the forests on the upper east coast, but I have never visited that area. Glad you are surrounded by lots of trees and love in your special spot the foothills of Adirondacks.

  2. I’m a BIG believer in walking outside when I can, Pat. Something about being in the sunshine and soft breezes is good for the inside of humans and dogs! Our trees haven’t put on a spectacular show this year — probably too little rain — but I’ve seen photos of trees in Wisconsin and Vermont that are amazing. I guess we’ll have to wait for another year.

    • I totally agree. I bet Dallas keeps you venturing outside on the cold, rainy, gloomy winter days. On my solo walks, I often think how nice it would be to have a dog by my side, but I hop the Big Pond too often to make that feasible.

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