Listen to the Trees

Listen to the trees. It was inscribed on the pier in sidewalk chalk. The writing was in white, and underneath the quote was a heart. At first, I read that it sounded nice and wise and stirred positive emotions. Then it hit me. There are no trees on the beach. So, if I wanted to implement the advice, I would have to wait until I was in the presence of trees. As I walked back down the pier, more thoughts came to my mind about this concept. Exactly what would the trees have to tell? I would believe they could tell of the joy of children playing in their branches and the horror of men being unjustly lynched in the South. The trees could talk about how they produce fruit and provide shade. Or they could explain how they give of themselves to provide wood for our shelter. Maybe we don’t need to find trees to listen to, but only to draw from our own experiences and learn the lessons the trees can teach.