Musings on the Hike up White Rocks Mountain. #1. Lessons from the Trees.
The trees at the cliff edge are short, twisted, and unsymmetrical. They have to resist the full force of the wind, rain, and snow. There is almost no soil to sustain them. Their roots penetrate deeply into cracks in the rock, making them virtually immune to being blown over. They are very short, and their twisted shapes give them a strong grain, making them less likely to break off in heavy winds. The branches are also short, and mostly grow away from the prevailing winds. Unlike the branches of trees at lower elevation, these are very strong and hard to force your way through.
You could compare these trees to people who live and grow on the frontiers, on the edges of human civilization, in the areas where survival is a constant daily struggle. These sort of people are usually rough, twisted to a degree, and not very attractive. They are usually relative loners, unsocial, independent. However, they can survive where most people would give up and die. They grow strong from the constant daily battle. The pioneers were folks like these.
Further back from the edges and down the mountain you find a lusher, taller forest. There is more soil and nutrition. The trees spread their roots out and interlock them with the roots of other trees in the forest, strengthening each other against being blown down. They grow taller, as the whole forest acts together as a windbreak.
These trees are a good representation of a healthy civilization, where people do compete with each other yet also support each other as a community. People are social and sociable. They work together to fight threats and produce a better environment for each while strengthening the forest as a whole. They buffer the harsh realities of life while not denying they exist.
The last comparison would be an "old growth" forest, seldom seen these days, but described by our forebears. In these woods, the trees have become huge, totally shading out the under-story. The only place new trees can and do grow is where an ancient giant dies or is shattered by a storm. While beautiful, these forests are stagnant. They provide no opportunity for young trees, and little food for animals. Sunlight rarely reaches the ground. Eventually natural death, storm or fire will open a clearing where new growth can flourish, but often a surviving oldster will then become a "wolf tree", spreading its branches wide and taking over a vast area all by itself.
These trees are a representation of a long established and stagnant human civilization. Everyone has staked out their place and holds onto it firmly. There are few young people, and for those there are opportunity virtually ceases to exist. Change grinds to a halt. The people become set in their ways and unwilling to try or allow new things. Eventually old people die and there is a limited opening for the new. Sometimes disaster will destroy the whole system and things will start over.
It seems to me that our country, founded on the "rugged pioneer", is now reaching the "Old Growth" stage. The 17th and 18th centuries were the age of the pioneer, while the 18th and 19th saw the emergence of the civilized era. Now we are in the 21st Century, the "Old Growth" era, which began in the 20th. Everything and everybody has to be rigidly controlled to prevent or control change. There is little opportunity for the young and they are rebelling. People live in the past. To the elderly, the past is the future and the future is the past. There is much talk about new, coming things, but in reality few ever arrive, being stifled by regulations and restrictions. People no longer share a common goal. People neither associate with each other nor work together. The wealthy few spread their branches and shade out everyone and everything around them. I see little hope for us unless and until the existing structure is swept away by disaster - which will be deadly and painful. Or God intervenes!
I guess the main thing I learned personally is that hardship isn't necessarily a bad thing. Wishing for the easy life may actually be bad for us. There is much truth to the saying "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger"!
Further back from the edges and down the mountain you find a lusher, taller forest. There is more soil and nutrition. The trees spread their roots out and interlock them with the roots of other trees in the forest, strengthening each other against being blown down. They grow taller, as the whole forest acts together as a windbreak.
These trees are a good representation of a healthy civilization, where people do compete with each other yet also support each other as a community. People are social and sociable. They work together to fight threats and produce a better environment for each while strengthening the forest as a whole. They buffer the harsh realities of life while not denying they exist.
The last comparison would be an "old growth" forest, seldom seen these days, but described by our forebears. In these woods, the trees have become huge, totally shading out the under-story. The only place new trees can and do grow is where an ancient giant dies or is shattered by a storm. While beautiful, these forests are stagnant. They provide no opportunity for young trees, and little food for animals. Sunlight rarely reaches the ground. Eventually natural death, storm or fire will open a clearing where new growth can flourish, but often a surviving oldster will then become a "wolf tree", spreading its branches wide and taking over a vast area all by itself.
These trees are a representation of a long established and stagnant human civilization. Everyone has staked out their place and holds onto it firmly. There are few young people, and for those there are opportunity virtually ceases to exist. Change grinds to a halt. The people become set in their ways and unwilling to try or allow new things. Eventually old people die and there is a limited opening for the new. Sometimes disaster will destroy the whole system and things will start over.
It seems to me that our country, founded on the "rugged pioneer", is now reaching the "Old Growth" stage. The 17th and 18th centuries were the age of the pioneer, while the 18th and 19th saw the emergence of the civilized era. Now we are in the 21st Century, the "Old Growth" era, which began in the 20th. Everything and everybody has to be rigidly controlled to prevent or control change. There is little opportunity for the young and they are rebelling. People live in the past. To the elderly, the past is the future and the future is the past. There is much talk about new, coming things, but in reality few ever arrive, being stifled by regulations and restrictions. People no longer share a common goal. People neither associate with each other nor work together. The wealthy few spread their branches and shade out everyone and everything around them. I see little hope for us unless and until the existing structure is swept away by disaster - which will be deadly and painful. Or God intervenes!
I guess the main thing I learned personally is that hardship isn't necessarily a bad thing. Wishing for the easy life may actually be bad for us. There is much truth to the saying "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger"!
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