Book 42 - A Year of Magical Learning

Reflection Title - We can Learn a Lot from Trees

Book - The Hidden Life of Trees: What they feel, How they communicate - discoveries from a secret world by Peter Wohlleben

Book Description: In The Hidden Life of Trees, Peter Wohlleben shares his deep love of woods and forests and explains the amazing processes of life, death, and regeneration he has observed in the woodland and the amazing scientific processes behind the wonders of which we are blissfully unaware. Much like human families, tree parents live together with their children, communicate with them, and support them as they grow, sharing nutrients with those who are sick or struggling and creating an ecosystem that mitigates the impact of extremes of heat and cold for the whole group. As a result of such interactions, trees in a family or community are protected and can live to be very old. In contrast, solitary trees, like street kids, have a tough time of it and in most cases die much earlier than those in a group.

Reflection: I honestly don't even know where to start on this one as I was blown away after reading this book and all I learned.

After reading this, I'll never look a tree the same way ever again. That is why I love this journey that I'm on currently. Books like this seemingly come out of nowhere to open your eyes to a whole new world that has always existed, but I was too blind to see or open to learn about before this whole journey began. I was stuck in my own little narrow paradigm and had NO IDEA trees were so amazing, complex, and not much different from humans in a lot of ways. They have families, the have feelings, they have "skin", they communicate and share information with each other, they work collaboratively with other species for mutual benefit, etc.

Trees know a lot more than they let on. They've found a way to spread their genes all over the world and live for hundreds and sometimes thousands of years consistently. They probably look at humans like a wise old Yoda and laugh while saying "stupid kids...maybe someday they'll figure this all out." We could probably learn a lot from them on how to model our own lives to help ensure a longer existence and more peaceful life.

So what's the secret? They don't survive and thrive by doing it on their own, constantly moving and settling in new lands, fighting with others over resources, preaching tribalism, etc like we do. TREES WORK TOGETHER, and more importantly, they work in harmony with the other life forms in their environments for mutual benefit.

You can't grow to be big, tall, strong, and 1,000 years old all by yourself. You will need every ounce of help this world has to offer. Trees have mastered the art of how to grow old and thrive in any environment. Forests are complex ecosystems that have developed over millions of years to optimize chances for longevity. You have to have elders to shelter and nourish the young when they are vulnerable, you have to communicate with each other to share information, you have to play nicely and share resources with others in your environment, and you have to embrace the circle of life and give back all you've acquired when your time is up.

We can learn a lot from the trees and everything else around us if we are willing to open our eyes to truly see all the beauty and wisdom this world has to offer.

Question: What lessons are you missing out on from all the things that surround your world everyday?

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Links:

What is The Year of Magical Learning? - An Introduction

YOML Podcast Discussion - The Hidden Life of Trees

YOML Bookstore - The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate--Discoveries from a Secret World by Peter Wohlleben