Radical Honesty about the trees--SOS!

Please bear with me as I have a story that is unfortunately repeating history. As I write this, the walls of my house are vibrating from saws cutting into the 50 foot tall white pine trees in my neighborhood. This deeply disturbing deforesting has been going on all week as I attempt to provide peaceful hospice care for one of my dear old dogs, Sparkey.

Last time deforestation happened so close to us was ten years ago, I was less experienced but still radically honest with my neighbors and the loggers. I calmy and kindly pleaded with them to leave the mother trees of the forest, the old growth trees. In the morning, those trees were cut down and the loggers had spray painted happy faces on the trees' exposed centers. So, we responded with sad faces on the trees and another visit to the neighbors to present a letter from community friends to save the remaining trees. The neighbors not only promptly kicked us off their land but took out a restraining order on everyone whose name was on that letter. How ineffective RH was that round!

We have since moved to another town nearby, largely in part, to be among forested trees again. The neighbor couple taking down the trees right now had a close call with one of the trees falling in a wind storm recently. The tree fell away from their home but it freaked them out enough to have all the trees sawed down, leaving glaring empty spaces, disturnbing the fragile ecosystem of nearby wetlands and the shelter those trees provided for owls, woodpeckers, mammals, etc.

I am at a loss. I don't  know what to do, and sitting here feeling the painful screaming of the trees rip through my heart chakra is not helping. Tonglen, perhaps, and continue to send love and compassion to the deva spirits as the saws still wail through and trees crash to the earth with a sickening thud that moves the earth under our home.

I invite your help. Shall I compose a letter to the couple? Am I too late to impact their consciousness even though I am too late to save the trees? Did I let my past experience render me helpless over private land owner decisions? Are there resources such as a letter to to such landowners that I can copy from the internet or can you help me compose one? And/or will you please send them healing also?

Thanks from the trees and me.

Re: Radical Honesty about the trees--SOS!

I am opening my arms to offer you healing from this trauma, Mary. I get your hurt and frustration.

I believe the ONLY way to bring balance to our world,/country,/community and rid it of its dis-ease is to be honest with ourselves, our friends, our neighbors, our fellow citizens of this land, and the world.

We CAN make a difference. We need to start reacting 24/7, no judy when discord touches us. We need to take part in the governing of ourselves.

We need to elect radically honest folks to represent us in our community, our state, our nation, and our planet. No more band-aids.

Do we dare? Have we the time? Do we care? What is really important to us, as a nation, a state, a community, a family, ME……??????

namaste, om shanti om


Love and light.  a being ready to create a space for the possibility of radical honesty

Re: Radical Honesty about the trees--SOS!

oops, after 24/7, should read just, not judy….sloppy me…excuse moi.

Re: Radical Honesty about the trees--SOS!

I don't have time to write more at the moment..but I just wanted to say that I so agree with you about trees..I just hugged a couple the other day again. I love trees. They are so amazing, and it blows my mind that others don't always respect them. I just wanted to share that..

More later…

Leslie

Re: Radical Honesty about the trees--SOS!

Good news! The owl nest was spared and so was the tree it sits in, the loggers came eye to eye with the snowy owl nest of baby owls and they had the heart not to take that tree out with them in it!!!  But all the trees around them came down, so now i can see the poor parent sitting on her babies, looking worried to me. While cute and amazing for humans to see, they are not supposed to be that exposed and vulnerable. I bet they won't come back next year, but i invite them to my patch of forest nearby that we pledge never to take down. i made a deal with the trees perilously close to my house that they get to stay and that they don't fall on my house! I made the same agreement with the mice that came in for the winter—they don't eat our food and they get to stay…its working, they have been in our kitchen late at night all winter but not once have they gotten into our food (except our compost next to the sink and the dog food leftovers which i welcome them too)…

wish i had a decent zoom lens to photograph the owl in her nest, but wait! my photographer son coems hoem this weekend so i will ask him to take some! if digital, i will post them on my blog…

just wanted to share the light of hope, a miracle really,  in the tree saga story!

Re: Radical Honesty about the trees--SOS!

Thanks for the update! 

We have had a couple of cases where some rich folks took out dozens of trees to get a better view, and, without permnission from the city to do it.

Fortunately we have local laws in place now to discourage it but it is still happening.

Let's hope your owl hangs around in spite of the exposure!

Many of us are awaiting the hatching of the eagle chicks on the Eagle web cam. They were supposed to hatch yesterday and the locals have warned the eggs may not hatch as the nesting eagles are getting a little long in the beak and the success rate diminishes with age they say.

Eagle Cam Here

Re: Radical Honesty about the trees--SOS!

G'day Mary,

Thank you for sharing the good news. And hugs to the loggers with caring hearts. Am sending lots of thank you's their way.

I saved a bat (flying fox) in Australia. I asked the electricity company if they would come out and rescue the tiny baby bat from its dead mum, hanging on the wires on the street outside my home. They thought I was crazy.

I hired a private electrician and he got Bartholemeuz down for me. He was the cutest, tiniest, little friend. Then the milkman, after finding out about Bart, brought me another bat baby, Aquarius. I hand fed those little guys with a formula I made up, that included freshly squeezed mango juice, administered in toy baby's bottles.

Aquarius, unfortunately, was eaten by a roaming cat. But, Bart lived with me for a number of years. He grew into a huge, healthy guy, with a wing span of a couple of feet. He showered with me, slept with me, hung off my rear vision mirror, when I was in my car, and was my best friend. He used to hang upside down off my clothes when I took him out.

I have lots of animal rescue stories, a baby 'roo I bought for $2.00 from a group of aboriginal children. Samantha grew up, curled up next to my belly, for months, until she was old enough to hop around all day. I tucked my tops in my jeans to make a pouch for her.

Life is magical and full of bliss when we honor and love each other and Mother Nature and all her magnificent creatures, plants, and all that is. 

Thank you Mary, for caring and loving your environment and your furry and feathered friends. You fill my heart with joy. It is my dream that we all become dedicated stewards of our wondrous planet, and live in peace and harmony  with each other and everything we “touch”.

Hugs, namaste   

Re: Radical Honesty about the trees--SOS!

you rescued and raised baby bats–and a kangaroo! you fill my heart with joy, too, Jaguar Goddess! (and thanks, Bruce, for this lovely pod in which to connect in this way)

because of reading my Zaadz blog about the owls, a couple of birders came over with tehir zoom lenses and photographed the owls, I will post the one i have on my blog soon. i learned from them that the owls are tow baby great horned owls, not snowy whites at all!

radical honest continues these days with the passing trouble in my paradise, but peace has returned,  the  owls are thriving and  today was like a stroll through mister roger's neighborhood (avoiding the clear cut area, of course) with the mailwoman stopping to give my dogs treats as i brushed away their winter coats by the pond (which hosts snappign turtles, frongs, beavers, muskrats, blue herons, geese and lotsa fish)…i am so blessed!

may we heal our great mother as we heal ourselves and our own back yards!

Re: Radical Honesty about the trees--SOS!

Your space is heaven sent, Mary. It must be such a treat to sit with Mother Nature and be. I would imagine that radical honesty, authentic truth, and bliss are easy to access in such a natural, sacred spot on our planet.   namaste….

Re: Radical Honesty about the trees--SOS!

yes, all of what you say is true—and my wish is for all beings to enjoy the ease of being, the beauty of life, and the “power of now”.

my commitment is to be an effective steward of the earth, to defend our great mother, in ways that call upon radical honesty with compassion, not in your face brutal honesty. aho.