Do you know what happens when your tree dies?

You came into this world without knowing what you'd get out of it. In the time that followed, you learned more. Some of what you learned changed a lot. And some always stayed the same. You grew beliefs, like a tree, watering and nourishing the branches you trusted in the most. The rest withered away. Throughout it all, you looked for others who grew trees, so you could talk about growing trees together.

Some things didn't work out. There were disappointments. Some of life's dreams were snatched away from you, like lighting striking your tree's branches. But that's alright, because you made new dreams — you grew them on your tree. And since you have a tree of beliefs, you believed in your dreams. Sometimes not enough. Sometimes too much. But you kept learning, growing with your tree.

Some of your fellow tree-growers are gone now. Permanently. With others, you discovered their trees looked too unlike yours, and you felt uncomfortable with this. And yet, there were other tree-growers you wanted to be near, even with very different trees.

Some of them didn't like you. They thought your tree was too big. Some tried to burn your tree instead of growing their own. Fire does nasty things to wood, you know? But you protected your tree, your beliefs, your dreams.

And the fires that missed kept you warm on lonely nights. Some nights, you carried your tree on your back. It was so heavy. You thought you had the only tree… but awoke to find yourself in the middle of a forest with other tree-growers. They invited you to plant yourself and stay. At least for awhile.

Your tree is getting older every day. It has scars, but it's still a growing tree. Sometimes it sways too much in the breeze, so you reinforce the branches or even hug it. You give your tree lots of hugs, because that's what it needs. And your tree makes you happy.

When your tree dies, you will too. It doesn't mean that your beliefs and dreams die — I hope your tree laid seeds upon the earth, because other people, who don't know what they'll get out of life yet, will come across your seeds. And they'll want to plant them and grow their own trees, because they believe, they dream too.

Everyday, grow your tree.

Tagged as: Better Lives, General, Ideas