Even Tall Pines Are Temporary

I went outside to sit for a while and stare at the tall pines out back. Word is they may come down soon and I will miss them. The thing about these gorgeous trees is that they are such a threat under the wrong conditions. But then again, isn’t everything. 

Tall longleaf pines are a key ingredient to the magic potion of this beautiful landscape in Northwest Florida. Their lives seem to be one big growth spurt. They grow from skinny little twigs to what appears as a statuesque and sturdy trunked monument in just a few years. Lining the byways of this region are generations of these trees. Driving past their forests, sunlight peeks through slivers of talk barky stalks. I am reminded of a hand drawn flip book. Each glimpse between the trees depicts the next drawing, flipping quickly to show this living scenery. At the top of this frame, wider gaps allow a peek at what lies beyond - sun, water, sky. The bottom of this frame is cluttered with new growth from a rich earth rejuvenated by prescribed burns. Some empty frames in this tall pine flip book depict where the forest has been replaced by neatly lined neighborhood streets or strip malls. 

Looking up all around me the bright evergreen leaves sway like eager paintbrushes tempting the sky to change its hue. They sway in symphony with the breeze. But if they sway too hard, that tall trunk doesn’t look nearly as tough. They bend back and forth. Long pine needles fly wildly as if in reaction to a thunderous electric guitar led anthem. With just enough wind these beautiful trees snap like a used kitchen match.

Conditions have been good - maybe great - for the last seven years where these tall pines stand today. There is nothing I would take away from this life they have lived with me here. In the worst moments I looked up to them in wonder - seeking hope. I watched and listened to the birds singing in their tree top nests, and the rattle of their healthy leaves shaking in the wind. I caught glances of the sun gleaming and putting every dimension of green on full display. I asked the universe for answers and it responded by allowing me to live another day.  In the best moments I grounded myself, looking up to them with gratitude. At times I felt my heart may burst. At these times I felt like a very tiny part of such a large and wondrous world. Both the good times and the bad were surrounded by this beauty. But word is conditions could change and when they do,  these living masterpieces which have given me so much hope, solace, and witness, will become a threat to the very shelter that houses me. 

The lesson of these trees is not to fret over the less than ideal conditions to come, but to cherish the good conditions while you have them, and to do the right thing when the time comes that these conditions inevitably change.

One morning I will go to greet "my" tall pines, and will find only the once hidden sky. Realizing now that the time spent with these trees was temporary, I cherish them even more.