The Cherry Tree
The Cherry Tree
The Cherry Tree, “it will be beautiful when it blooms”. Noted daily a particular bunch of blossom. Then on a day in late April, on some of the tree, it blossomed. The rest followed, until there were no budding
blossoms to emerge anywhere. It was a sunny week and the tree was magnificent, it blazoned its life as
a cherry tree, with dark pink abundant blossoms. It would have been preparing itself for doing this, as
well as working through its other conditions, of growth and sleep, all year long.
It is sat under in warm summer days. The mower goes over one of its huge roots. A pigeon uses a
particular branch to land on, as well as small birds using it as an aviary. Other visiting birds use it to
launch from, onto nuts that hang from it. We expected it to delight in spring and it did. But the cherry tree
itself, just continues to live quietly in the garden.
But now not long after it blossomed, there are small petals dropping ‘what a disappointment’.
‘how could it do that to me after waiting so long for it to bloom’. But the cherry tree continues quietly at
the edge of the lawn and does not explain.
It could be surmised, because of the very dry spring, this living tree is making adjustment according to
conditions of weather and wind. It could be surmised that, it is no dummy and knows best how to protect
itself.
As well as the beauty of the blossom there is more to be learned from the cherry tree. It is undisturbed
living its life it does not need to travel anywhere or own anything to do this. So it adjusts to present
conditions and does not try to make them otherwise
It could be assumed that unlike humans the cherry tree lives its life in harmony with what is rather than
what it wants. It does not torture itself with wishing that things were other than they are. So a lesson from
the cherry tree, among the many might be, to emulate the cherry tree and not always be reacting to how
we want things to be, rather that accepting them as they are. Harmonizing with the cherry tree, would do
no harm and perhaps give peace of mind.
I will look again at the cherry tree and the blossoms and hope to realise the flowering and the
falling of the blossom are just as they are and do not need my judgements.
