Meeting the Tree

Verses from the Gospel of Mark juxtapose with a nature game

And taking the blind man by the hand,
he brought him out of the village;
and after spitting on his eyes,
and laying his hands upon him,
he asked him, “Do you see anything?”

And he looked up and said, “I see men,
for I am seeing them like trees, walking about.”

Then again he laid his hands upon his eyes;
and he looked intently and was restored,
and began to see everything clearly.

Gospel of Mark, 8:23-25

This year, I am immersed in a bible study of the Gospel of Mark. I’m also an instructor with a nature connection program for children. Quite often, what we study in Mark converges with something that takes place with the kids in nature. More and more I experience nature as God’s Word, and more and more I discern the truth of Jesus’ words:

“Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it at all.”

Mark 10:15

The resurrection has happened, after all (even as we celebrate it anew this Sunday): Heaven is united with earth. So, how do we enter it in the here-and-now?

One nature program day, I had the children blindfold and lead me to our meeting place in the forest. Which they did - but not by any path. They had me crawl through raccoon tunnels in the thickets. My senses sprang awake, as I tuned into my hands and feet, and to sounds and smells. And, led by the children up and down strange passages, I attempted to identify my way with these newly engaged senses. And, I couldn’t stop laughing.

I love being blindfolded or blindfolding myself and setting off into nature. The world becomes enchanted, and I “see” in ways I often forget about when I return to my usual sighted state. In those times in nature with the kids when we laugh and discover and build things and sneak and climb, and leave the usual world behind, I know I’m stepping into grace and an expanded state of heart, and into the way in which we are meant to be.

Paloma listens - art by Jane Valencia

In the nature program we have an activity called “Meet a Tree.” Children pair up, and one is blindfolded. The other child guides their blindfolded partner to a tree. The blindfolded child explores the tree, getting to know it like a dear friend. Then the other child guides them back to the starting point. The blindfold is removed, and the formerly sightless child now sees if they can find their tree.

Not long after my own blindfold adventure with the kids, and having just passed the third anniversary of my Christian reawakening, we, in my bible study, arrived at Mark 8. I realized that for a time, I had been like the blind man, with a new way of seeing, but still perceiving just shapes of things. Suddenly Mark 8:23-25 overlay on the “Meet a Tree” nature game.

This poem beckoned.

Meeting The Tree

He took me outside the village
and spit on my eyes
and he laid his hands on me
And he asked me, “Do you see anything?”

And those first days, months,
I saw men as trees walking about,
but not clearly

Now I am like the child in
the nature game:
blindfolded
I am led to a tree

My hands grasp the bark,
and reach for the branches,
and stroke and smell the needles,
and taste them, too:
Aromatic, and a little lemony.
My feet find purchase on the roots
And I begin to grasp the shape
of him.

I take into account
orientation and meandering distance
my path to this point:
thick interlace of salal and huckleberry
the encumbrance of stones,
the cool shadow
and poke and jab
of salmonberry vines.
Then,
sunlight on my face
movement of air
and a tiny sound like angels in my ear
With you I sit, O my Tree

Your peace grows, at first an acorn, thimble-sized
then unfurling as a mighty oak
And I begin to learn
the heartwood of the Gospels
the branches and spread of liturgy
the leafy shimmer and snap of
insight and tales
told by those I know
who have been walking with you awhile:
there on earth and
here in heaven

And when time nudges, and
the Holy Spirit brings me to my feet
and guides me back
to some other clearing, and
the blindfold whisks away,
I know exactly where you are.
There! Here!

Lord, let me be like the child
who knows this one Tree
O, my Tree, you.

Let me rest and stay with you.
As life comes and goes
like trees walking about
May I see at last.

Everything, clearly.

Try it yourself:

Find a trusted companion - maybe even a child! Be sure they know that they are serving as your guide, even like a guardian angel, taking care that you don’t meet with calamity.

With blindfold on, have your “angel” lead you to a tree or other place outdoors. (You can just close your eyes, but it’s different when you’re blindfolded. Try both ways, if you like.) Take in your journey and destination with all your senses. You might say a prayer before you embark, and you might pray when you arrive. And you could also pray at the end - Amen! Whatever speaks to you.

Navigate by curiosity and wonder, and maybe expectation of a little mischief!

Then switch places with your companion, and lead them into nature. What do you discover now, as you lead and shelter them?

If you wish, share your stories in the comments below.

Joys of Easter, Pascha ~

Jane

And I will lead the blind
in a way that they do not know,
in paths that they have not known
I will guide them.
I will turn the darkness before them into light,
the rough places into level ground.
These are the things I do,
and I do not forsake them. (Isa 42:16)