Picturing Paradise
and finding the best tree in the forest
Many of us can visualize for ourselves what we think paradise might be like. Or, at least, we can point to some of the elements that might make for a beautiful setting that we might enjoy being in for quite some time.
Maybe there are trees. Perhaps there is a river. There could be people you really love there and maybe there are activities you know you will enjoy.
I have no illusions that everyone would agree on the details. I also recognize that the wide range of experiences that people have would make it impossible for each of us to understand where everyone else is coming from.
But, I do believe that most people would probably react positively if they were exposed more often to the beauty of nature.
I have memories of school field trips to Ashton Wildwoods Park in Jasper County. One trip I remember fairly well included a little bit of time with a Park Ranger - or maybe it was two? I wish I could remember them better, but I wasn't very old and I probably didn't think that information would be useful for a blog later in life.
On this particular trip, I remember we were each encouraged to find a tree that we liked. We were instructed to touch the tree we had chosen and look at it carefully. Then, we spent time trying to draw our selected tree and write a few words about it. I find it interesting that I remember concluding that MY tree was the BEST tree in the whole woods.
Why? Because it was a tree I had taken the time to get to know.
I learned about Bloodroot, Jack in the Pulpit, and Dutchman's Breeches. I remember thinking that these things must be exotic and precious - special due to their unlikely appearance in my daily world. Instead, I had to take special trips to special places to see them. Even my seven or eight year-old self could recognize that there weren't that many places in our state that would be amenable to these plants.
They were interesting, beautiful and mysterious. And I was not the only student who was feeling this way.
I found it interesting that Bloodroot was actually used as a red dye by people indigenous to Iowa. The ranger even found us a plant and gently dug up the roots to show us how that might have worked. They went on to tell us about stone tools and mentioned that a person could still find arrowheads and other artifacts at the park.
The stream you see above is the stream at Ashton Wildwoods Park. As we walked by an area similar to this I happened to look down and saw a stone with an interesting shape. I picked it up and showed it to the ranger and asked if it was an arrowhead. He confirmed that it was, looking a little impressed that I could find one just moments after the presentation on the topic.
Here's where the story turns away from paradise and towards humanity's reality. I was curious and wondered how strong this arrowhead was, so I tested the strength by trying to bend it. Of course it snapped, because it had worn to a fairly thin piece of rock in the stream.
I was devastated. And ashamed. And I told no one.
Happily the ranger did not think to ask me to show everyone what I had found. So, I dodged that embarrassment at least.
Over time, I took a liking to things like German Bearded Iris and green beans and snapdragons. These cultivated and tamed representations of some of the wild beauty one can find in those uncommon locations in our state are pale shadows of the wild places that struggle to exist now. But, at least I can find a small place where the soil is black and fertile where I live and I can grow a few things.
By adding some plants to my world I can have a little taste of whatever paradise I am allowed.
I find beauty in a solid row of green beans with some marigolds mixed in here and there. It gets even better if there are some other crops and plants nearby. The soil has its own beauty, though I know it prefers not to be as exposed as I often make it when I farm. But, I enjoy the participation nature allows me to have when I raise food crops and add in other plants for habitat and.. well... just the joy of adding them.
I recognize that nature often pays a cost for my participation and I try to honor it as best as I am able. I remind myself that I should not try to control it all.
Why?
Because I have seen some of the beautiful places and I know that I need to curb my greed and find ways to participate and not dominate. After all, participation can take just as much (or more) effort and it actually is much more rewarding.
I've learned that paradise isn't just about me, though my part in it can mean so much from my point of view. Of course that makes sense, because how I feel about it IS about me. And I know I wouldn't feel the same awe and joy if it was only about me.
Taking a walk next to a cold stream clearly has nothing to do with anything I have cultivated other than the love I have for plants and cold, clear water, fresh air, and the feel of the ground under my feet.
These little slices of beauty provide me with fuel to live and it has little to do with anything I have done and everything to do with the fact that I am being "allowed." Allowed to experience. Allowed to feel, smell, taste and see. Allowed to breathe in deep. Allowed to simply drink it all in.
I just wish we would allow more of these places in our world to be what they are - if only so we can be allowed to visit paradise once in a while.
And maybe, we can find for ourselves…
The best tree in the forest.
This blog was significantly revised for a new release on February 5, 2024. Originally released March 3, 2021.