Injury

Perhaps because I was recently injured, I was struck by this beech tree missing a significant section of bark. I have no idea what losing this was like for the tree, but knowing a bit about injury, I can’t imagine it was fun. I know, it’s dangerous to anthropomophize. But maybe it’s a way to bring a bit more compassion to our interactions with the natural. world.

I walk by this tree most mornings and I’ve always been aware of the injury. But since my injury, well, it’s had a very different feeling for me. So while I can enjoy this image as a topographic map or some other abstraction, I’m more inclined to just look and hope that the healing takes away some of the pain.