The Hidden Life of Trees
The book that brings me closer to my Wishtree
Fairy was born between grey and concrete, far away from home, as most fairies are (that is, I think, why they have wings!). For as long as she can remember, the forest called her, and she felt so close to trees. She does not know when she first started hugging them, but she must have been very small. She does remember how it felt, which is exactly how it still feels now: surprisingly warm, even in the winter, beautifully scented, and as if she gets connected to an endless source of life and energy.
Trees are alive and wise and sentient. She feels their wisdom and enjoys talking about it with enthusiasm. But Fairy learned with surprise that this belief can sometimes anger people. It is the same anger one can witness when the question of eating meat arises, and it’s easy to understand. Fully grasping the pain we cause, and admitting to it, does not bare softly on the Heart. It is easier to think of trees as construction material and source of warmth, just ready for the picking. The fact that they also produce oxygen is the main motivator for keeping some of them alive, yet planting saplings does a lot less good than we think it does.
Trees are alive and full of wisdom. They talk to each other and love each other and nurture each other. They feel intensely what is being done to them. They like being hugged and loved, and they suffer when they are wounded. They mourn the death of their friends.
Not long ago, these words belonged in fables alone, but now there is undeniable science to back these myths. Peter Wohlleben’s research gives a glimpse into the fascinating life of trees, and rallies many other scientists to the quest of uncovering life, magic, love and wisdom in the depths of the forest. His wonderful book, The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate — Discoveries from a Secret World, is his first attempt of many to open our eyes towards the magic of the forest.
“We read in fairy tales of trees with human faces, trees that can talk, and sometimes walk. This enchanted forest is the kind of place, I feel sure, that Peter Wohlleben inhabits. His deep understanding of the life of trees, researched through decades of careful observation and study, reveals a world so astonishing that if you read his book, I believe that forests will become magical places for you, too” writes Tim Flannery, the renown Australian scientist and writer on climate change.
So what does this book have to do with The Merry Fairy?
More than mere inspiration, The Hidden Life of Trees helps me find the voice of the Wishtree, one of Fairy’s friends that will visit you at the cottage. The Wishtree is an old friend of Fairy, full of stories about the forest. And since, thanks to Peter Wohlleben’s work, we have established beyond a shadow of a doubt that the forest is magical, alive and wise, it must be no surprise that the Wishtree has magical powers too.
The Wishtree is a real pine cone that I go to hug wh called. It stands proud on a small old hill in Fairyland, overlooking the forest. It is surrounded by an overwhelming carpet of cones from all sorts of different trees, offered as tribute. All the creatures of the forest know the Wishtree’s unique magic: granting wishes. And so they come with cones as gifts to lie by the Wishtree’s roots. But its not just any wish and any cone the Wishtree wants. The Wishtree works exclusively with true wishes of the Heart, and calls those in need to make a wish by pushing cones in their path.
Will you welcome the Wishtree to visit you?
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