The tree is never absent, but always silent
Day 10 of my tree puja. It’s the winter solstice, the longest night.
I visited the tree in the pre-dawn of the longest night…
She embodies Mother and silence.
Trees are the arms and hands of Mother Earth
Day 9 of my tree puja. I feel the tree as an aspect of Mother Earth.
The tree has continuity, which is a quality of Mother. Regardless of the child’s foibles the mother continues her work of love.
The tree stood silent under the moon
Day 8 of my tree puja. In which I offer the warmth of my body to the cold soil.
This morning, I went to the tree, which shone in the moonlight.
The tree is patient
Day 7 of my tree puja. I don’t quite get there.
This morning the tree excused me from visiting.
Tears are little but they have big causes
Day 6 of my tree puja. Emotions come and go, but the tree is always grounded.
This morning with my bare feet I stubbed my toe on a rock in the dark.
Tree, you bring me outside
Day 5 of my tree puja. It’s warm and cosy inside. I venture out to meet the winter morning.
You bring me outside to feel the dripping rain and sodden, rough ground.
The tree has courage
Day 3 of my tree puja journal. I feel the courage of the tree and draw on that, as I need it today. There is a poem about bare feet.
Come to me with your feet bare,
And I will wash the dust of journeys past and now.
Trees wear no shoes
Day 2 of my tree puja journal. There is always an insight, a moment of truth and peace.
I looked up at the remaining leaves against the last of the night sky. A little breeze came, and the leaves and the breeze had a morning conversation. They talk in whispers and movement, through touch…
Trees contain the wisdom of God
The first day of my tree puja, 2009. It begins in the rain. And the rain goes on and on.
Last night it rained softly and there are traces of water running in dark lines on the tree trunk. It runs down her body and thence into the soil, having enjoyed her skin and the winding journey of her limbs before disappearing into the dark depths of soil and planet.
Puja ~ The Tree and Me
Tree puja (worship) is an Indian custom in which an offering is made to a tree. In 2009 I vowed to practice this ritual at dawn for one year. As the seasons passed, my relationship with the tree evolved.