Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Pagan
Living Like a Tree

Living Like a Tree

Last updated on: October 2, 2017 at 9:23 am by Amy Beltaine

Living Like a Tree 2017-10-02T09:23:34+00:00 Amy Beltaine

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The Song

Living like a tree
with my roots dug down
My branches wide and open
Come down the rain
Come down the sun
Come down the fruit
to a heart that is open
to be…

Photo Credit: veeterzy

My spiritual practices almost always contain song and motion. Living Like a Tree is one of my go-to songs. When I’m feeling like my heart and spirit are not getting nourished, I turn my attention to my roots. When I feel disconnected from my life-mission I turn my attention to opening my heart and my spiritual branches. When I am feeling like the rain is coming too fast or the sun light is too strong, I remember the season and the constant change that a tree goes through.

Living Like a Tree

By Howcheng (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html), CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/) or CC BY-SA 2.5 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5)], via Wikimedia Commons

I learned it as “standing” like a tree. Then listened to beloved people in my life who could not “stand” when doing spiritual practice, and some who cannot even sit. There is no reason to exclude anyone with our language if we can change it, so it was an easy change. Using “living” instead of “standing” allows someone in a hospital bed to fully enter into an experience of the imagery of roots and branches. As I sing this line, I imagine my spine as a tree trunk. I focus on my core strength and the energy running through me.

With My Roots Dug Down

from: http://bugs.bio.usyd.edu.au/learning/resources/
plant_form_function1/plant_form/primary_roots.html

What nurtures you? Usually when I offer a tarot card reading I use a layout that includes a tree metaphor. One card is the roots, one card is the fruits. When you look at your life, what nourishes you? What gives you energy and a reason to get out of bed in the morning? Who supports you? Where do you go to renew and rejuvenate? The roots are what you take in. The fruits are what you give to the world. As I sing this line I imagine roots sunk into the earth. Sometimes I take the time to imagine the roots going down all the way to the center of the earth where my spirit-roots are not harmed by the molten core of the earth that is pure raw energy. Often I wiggle my toes against whatever surface supports me. This works better without shoes on.

My Branches Wide and Open

Did you know that Aspen trees are not individuals? They grow as a group and share resources. The human community needs each other – our spiritual branches intertwine – and we rely on the community to exist and to flourish. As I sing this line I raise my hands to the air. I feel the breath that was once breathed by dinosaurs, that came from plants, that has been a part of animals all over the world. I imagine my branches connecting with the branches of other people in a forest of humanity that calmly sways together in peace and mutual support.

Come down the Rain, Come down the Sun

Our lives are full of unexpected (and expected) gifts and struggles. Physical health, relationships, compassion for others, getting one’s needs met, and the daily accidents of life can delight us and plunge us into despair. The sun can be nourishing and it can burn. Rain can fill you with needed sustenance or can overwhelm. These are the conditions of our lives. They can weigh us down, and without help, they can destroy us. They can also lift us up, and be magnified by sharing. The seasons of birth, of love, of productivity, of loss, of wisdom, and finally transformation into something beyond human pass over, and through, us. Nature continues on, even as we human beings emerge and disappear.
As I sing this line I move my hands into the shape of the sun above my head, then twinkle my fingers down like rain drops.

Come down the fruit

The fruit can come from the community, from the divine, from the universe and all we hold holy. The fruit can come from the sacred within you. As the poet Judy Grahn says “My heart is an apple.” What we offer to the world is nourishment for others, and is sourced from the ground of being through our own essence, our own hearts. What are the gifts that your heart years to offer? How do you make the world a better place? How do you live your best self? How do you serve the spirit of love? As I sing this line I hold my hands out to offer the imaginary fruit held in them.

To a Heart that is Open

Whole-hearted living is only possible if your heart is open. You must be open to giving and receiving love, and with that, you must be open to the loss and grieving and pain that comes with being truly open to life. This tender-hearted path is not for the faint-of-heart. It takes great courage and fortitude to be open-hearted. It takes failing, again and again, and trying again and again. It takes self-compassion and the willingness to ask for the support and nourishment you need. It takes risks. You must risk offering the fruit that you are called to give. As I sing this I bring my hands, which just had the imaginary fruit in them, to my heart, and then open them wide to hug the whole world.

To Be…

The song circles around. There is no beginning, there is no end. We are constantly in this present moment, learning to BE and not rely on the identity of “do”ing. This still point is just as important as the roots, the fruit, and the changes of the season. Just be. Breathing into your whole, sacred, self.

Blessed be.

Uncategorized

Earth-Centered

spiritual practice

Unitarian Universalism

Previous Post

September 29, 2017

Psyche and Eros

Next Post

October 6, 2017 Speaking Only Truth

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Current Events CUUPS Press Release Interfaith liturgy Media Review podcast Religious Education Seasonal Reflection Spiritual Practice Summary Uncategorized

Select a Month July 2026 June 2026 April 2026 January 2026 December 2025 October 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 February 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz