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Zoom Out: Bark, Tree, Forest

Talking to a caregiver the other day, she mentioned that she "hates Facebook because it's so fake." I've heard the same charge made about funerals and memorials.

I have a different point of view. Look closely at a tree; not very attractive if is has a big ole burl blemishing the appearance. What about broken branches from the last storm? And the gaping hole, former home of birds, current home for squirrels. What a flaw! N.ow that I think about it, it's not symmetrical. Hardly a perfect specimen with bugs burrowing into the bark and vermin running about, up and down the trunk. Yikes!

Now step away from that tree, see it with fresh eyes. You see it more generally; it's a tree, home to birds and squirrels, a food source for woodland creatures, a focal or backdrop for the nature photographer. Perhaps it gets harvested, becomes furniture or lumber to build a home. And that ugly burl? Goes to the craftsman to become stunning art. Maybe it falls to the woodsman's chainsaw to fuel the stove and warm the hearth or feed the bear as it decays on the forest floor.

Whether that tree is a loner or one in a community, it is important and worthy simply for being. It is worth honoring for what it is.

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Location: 2720 E Madison St, Seattle, WA 98112, USA

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