Kevin and Dorothy spend a soothing hour or so talking about the wonderful things in the world that make life worthwhile. Listen while you go for a walk in the forest or spend a quiet afternoon dreaming of spring.
What’s your favourite tree and why? Kevin says his new favourite is Linden because of the way it perfumes the air in early summer. Their shape is so perfect, so symmetrical, and Kevin likes the way the heart-shaped leaves with their serrated edges show round the edges of the canopy. Kevin says it was only recently that he discovered the delicious scent coming from the cluster of small flowers the tree bears in late June.
It’s hard to choose between that and the lovely birch, they both agree, but Dorothy sees beauty in the sturdy polar, too. That’s the talking tree, says Kevin, referring to the whispering of the leaves as they are stirred by the wind. Trembling aspen does that, too.
Inspired by the mood, they play Louis Armstrong’s, What a Wonderful World, where Louis sings of “trees of green, red roses too . . .”
Kevin remembers growing up with oak trees which were not only beautiful they were useful. His Dad would smoke meat with green oak. He would prowl the neighbourhood for branches to prune and in fall the kids would collect acorns to feed the bison! He tells how he now has a 12-foot-long oak table made from a tree that was in his father’s yard. What a wonderful way to entertain your family.
They talk about the amazing wildlife all around us: birds and squirrels and raccoons and how badgers are so smart. They marvel over the arctic fox that travelled over 3,000 miles across the ice from the Europe Asia to North America.
Not only animals migrate that way, but trees do too, says Dorothy, who has a book called the Journeys of Trees about this phenomenon. This leads to a discussion about the resilience of nature and how it gives us hope for the future. We are all part of the beautiful continuum. We should feel buoyed up by the beauty all around us. It is so important to just stop and look and listen counsels Kevin.
Dorothy introduces Kevin to a song called Little Willow by Paul McCartney. He had never heard this before but loved its message, one of hope.
They talk about fruit trees and what grows best in Manitoba. There are new pear varieties that are successful and how apricots have become a lovely, luscious fruit here in Manitoba.
They say goodbye to the warm tones of Hank William Jr. singing Mighty Oak Tree.