Stepping outside into the entrance of the forest near my home dominated by cedar, oak and tulip poplar I see bare branches -a mix of grey and brown trees reaching tall towards the white fluffy clouds and grey skies above me, and their roots hidden in the white blanket of covered earth below me. The snow feels fluffy beneath my feet and as I look down I see a flurry of fresh animal tracks as if the forest creatures had a party here last night 🙂 I see clear squirrel prints going every which way, deer prints walking in a straight line and even fox prints too. It makes me wonder what was happening around here? As I walk a little further out, a herd of about 30 deer stop in their tracks and we both stare at each other. A few turn away from me ready to flee with their white tails up in the air. As I continue to walk they stay and I can feel them watching me. The life in the forest is alive and well despite the freezing temperatures and naked tree branches awaiting new foliage. As I round a corner I almost walk on top of a holly tree sprout. The first green I have seen in this forest today. It immediately makes me smile.
The holly tree is a very sacred tree in Celtic mythology, representing peace, hope and goodwill. Holly leaves resist lightning and they used to be planted near peoples homes to protect them from lightening strikes! Because of their spiked leaves it is a wonderful abode for birds to protect them from predators and when their flowers bloom in the springtime their scent is beloved by the bees and butterflies 🙂 As an evergreen, no matter how dire it feels some days to me out in the bare bones of a winter forest the life represented in those green leaves bring me immediate warmth and joy. It is a good reminder that the leaves on all the trees will sprout again, flowers will bloom, and we will soon hear the buzzing of pollinators.
Seeing this little sprout of the holly tree peek through the snow reminds me of the opening circle we held during one of our homeschool programs. We had asked the kids what they most loved about Nature. A handful of those students who had been with us for a while thoughtfully answered in various ways that ‘being out in nature was very calming for them, it was peaceful, and made them happy.’ I think one of the special things about our programs is the sheer amount of time in Nature – something that doesn’t seem to happen too often (without intentionally carving out the time to do so) in our society these days. These very heartfelt answers gave me a lot of hope for our future – just like that little sprout of the holly tree. When children feel the impact and beauty inherent in the natural world it can create ripples of hope for our future on this planet far wider than we may realize.
– Laura Rose, Field Instructor