Yesterday was a day off in many Canadian provinces for different reasons.
In the Atlantic Canadian province of New Brunswick, we had a great reason to celebrate since it was NB Day!
This post is simply meant to share with you the picture of a tree Bambi has fallen in love with since she moved to South-Eastern NB sixteen years ago. She took this undated picture herself at the Fort Beauséjour/Fort Cumberland National Historic site. This famous fort was “the scene of three acts of war between France and Great Britain, the deportation of the Acadians and the tearing apart of British North America“. (https://shorturl.at/0PVHg).
As you can see/guess, the area of the Chignecto isthmus where the fort is located (at the border of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia) is almost always quite windy, even in the summer and on warmer days. Indeed, you can easily see the impact of the strong wind from how the tree is tilted.
Of note, the tree (no clue what type) moves Bambi’s heart each time she visits it because it teaches her a valuable lesson: how to survive by bending with the wind of life. Yes, being psychologically flexible, not stiff, is a marker of a good mental health, at all times and perhaps maybe even more so during conflicts or crises. This is what will allow us to be open for self-growth. Indeed and according to Dr. Rachel Goldman, “What psychological flexibility boils down to is staying in the present moment and being open to experiencing whatever thoughts or feelings may arise, and then take action that is aligned with our values” (https://shorturl.at/jAO6).
Of course, there are other beautiful trees, including birch trees, olive trees, fruit trees, Christmas trees, Palm trees, Cedars, and Pine trees. Bambi adores the latter, even if she has been allergic to them, at least during her childhood (or she rarely encounters them in North America).
What about you? What is your favourite tree in life and why? You may have a personal reason. Maybe a good memory, maybe a tree to symbolize life at birth or the memory of a loved one following his/her death? Who knows? Maybe you study trees or you may have cultural reasons to honour them? Mind you, you may also be someone who is not fond of trees. One is free to love nature or not, as long as we all know how to respect it.
To conclude this post on a musical note, Bambi will leave you with two songs. The first one is in French and she discovered it while preparing this post. It is by Mr. Julien Clerc and it is entitled “Sous mon arbre” [Under My Tree]. An English translation can be found at this link: https://shorturl.at/NtbEN. As for the second Lebanese-Arabic song, it is by Fairuz and performed below by Mr. George Nehme (yes, we established that he is the brother of Ms. Abeer Nehme, also a great singer). As she may have already shared, Bambi loves this melody about a girl playing on a tree because it reminds her of wonderful memories of a quick family reunion with cousins visiting or residing in Montreal. She misses them so much. Same for all her beloved cousins. May each one of them be safe and sound, especially those in Beirut… today more than ever given the worrisome news.
I lived out west for a time and there were no maple trees. I missed their vibrant colors in the falls so I’d have to say sugar maples are one of my favourite trees. I loved trees in general since I was a child I use to go in the woods and collect their leaves and needles so I could figure out all their names. I planted 3 maple tress in memory of my lost pets.
Thank you Bonnie for sharing. True, they are so beautiful those maple trees. You reminded Bambi of how she used to collect and mail the colourful leaves to her relatives in Lebanon upon her arrival to Canada 34 years ago. It is very moving to know that you planted 3 maples trees for your lost pets. May the beautiful memories with them fill your heart with increased inner peace and continuous love. Thank you for enriching the blog with your thoughtful comments.