I am a tree

                                I am a tree



This story begins by saying that I am a tree, and am proud to be a tree.  I have big,



beautiful sprawling branches with luscious leaves coming from them.  I stand tall and



am a huge component of my environment.  I am a volunteer to my community in all



that I do.  I breathe in carbon dioxide and breathe out oxygen for all human beings to



breathe.  I give shelter and refuge to the forest creatures whether they be birds or



squirrels or chipmunks.  These little animals crawl up into my domain, and sit on my



branches to enjoy the day, feel the breeze or hide from the effects of the sun.  They



scurry around the branches playing, sometimes chasing each other in a game.  I am



a domain that they enjoy and I shelter them from the forest and all of the things in the



world that endanger them.  Sometimes in my community I am used as a refuge, a place



to go for comfort and shelter.  I have a friendly neighborhood cat who going outdoors



becomes scared and climbs into my branches for comfort and to hide.  Of course, her



loving owners will come to me and finding her, will take her back down, back to her



loving home for care. 





I am a place where children will come to escape and play.  Sometimes, they climb me



using my branches as steps, they climb me and then sit and gloat that they were able



to accomplish this.  I enjoy this as I love little children.  As they sit in my branches,



I whisper to them by fleeting, moving leaves to tickle their faces.  Sometimes, my



human friends will use me to help ornament their existence, by putting bird feeders



or hanging ornaments from my branches.  I like this very much as it makes me



feel ornamental, kind of like one feels when they have a new pair of earrings to wear. 



Of course, not all is well at all times in life and sometimes things happen that we do



not enjoy or want, but it is the way of the world.  Sometimes, the winds will whip



and the storms will come and that can cause breaks to my branches and limbs.  My



leaves are pulled from my arms like an amputation, and thrown to the ground in a



treacherous episode.    But as I stand tall and am healthy and strong, I will grow new



leaves to replace those that were lost and I will heal the places where my limbs were



broken.  Once again, I will be fine and will be able to resume my life as king of the



woods, ruler of the exterior world.



Another thing that happens in my world is that I am used as a marking or as a way to



find things and places.  Humans will say, “come to the yard with the big, beautiful oak



tree and pull into the yard”.  Or, it will be known that the big tree stands behind the



church and can be seen for miles and miles away.  Children have trees in their yards



and as they grow, so does the tree.  The tree grows taller and wider and closer to the



sky and they grow along with it.  Humans love to take pictures and in many families,



a tree is used as a backdrop for their yearly activities and holidays.  So I am able to



share in their joys and holidays and since I am the place where the family picture will



be taken. 



Sometimes things happen that I do not like or enjoy but unfortunately, my ability to



share these with the world is limited as I am not allowed to open my lips and speak



my mind.  Sometimes, I will have a young person come and carve something into



my trunk which is painful but also disfigures me.  Sometimes, a couple will come and



use my trunk to carve their initials, showing their undying love.  Sometimes, I will have



a target hung to my limbs or trunk and a person shoots the target and my body is injured



with bullets as they pierce my bark and go deep into my tissue.  All of these things are



painful and I bleed sap and my exterior is injured.  No one gives me a bandaid or comes



and puts lotion on me or give me an antibiotic to make me feel better.  I reach deep into



myself and begin the healing process to heal my limbs and regrow the areas that were



injured.  Years later, those same, callous humans come back and look at their carvings



and laugh, and giggle about what they did all those years ago.  I am angry and want



to tell them what they did was unkind, but I am not allowed to share that with them.



Another episode that can happen is that sometimes,  a local dog will come and be



beneath my trunk and will walk around the trunk sniffing and looking.  Then he will



lift his leg and urinate on me, as a way of marking territory.  There are weeks where



I have a million dogs doing that to me and I just want to escape and go somewhere to



shower and wash all that off me.  Again, I cannot do this, so I just wait until the next



shower and I pray that it washes me clean and then the sun dries me off.



Of all these things that happen, I continue to be a fortress in my community and am



alive and experiencing all these things and sharing with my humans.  Overall, I am



happy and do not mind the negative things that happen, as for the most part, my life



is good and I am happy overall.



Once a year, as the seasons change, my leaves begin to turn beautiful colors of



gold and orange and then they begin falling from my limbs, onto the ground.  Over a



month or so period, I am stripped bare and am left being just a towering statue of what



my usual green, leafy state is.  I do not mind this yearly shedding of leaves, as for me,



it is a rest, a time to rest and rekindle and think of my life.  Almost like a polar bear



who hibernates all winter, in the winter my life is much more calm and boring and I



am not used by my community like I am the rest of the year.  By the time spring comes,



I am ready again to be the pillar of the world.  My leaves begin to grow back and I



stretch my limbs toward the sun and begin my days in the eye of the community.



So as I began my story, I am a tree and I love to be a tree, am proud of my heritage



and happy to embark on the life that I live.  Forever and ever, amen, as we end all



of the prayers of our life.



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