Is Cutting Down Trees the Right Thing to Do?

Cut / Logged Timber

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Life has a better quality to it when we are able to live in homes which have furniture and floors made of natural wood. However, one has to cut down living trees. Is this the right thing to do?

Does the life of a tree start when the seed is sprouting or before, when the oak seed, beech nut or cembra nut or a winged seed falls off the tree? Or even earlier, when the seed is ripening on the mother tree? Maybe even before that, when the genetic information for the upcoming flower and seed production is being determined? Is it possible to say when exactly life begins? Grasping the mystery of trees leads us to many magical natural cycles.

As a living and active being, the tree pioneers into the dark world which we came from and will return to. We try to negate this underworld from our thoughts, maybe because it reminds us of our own mortality? Could this be one of the reasons why we don't like to think about death?

By penetrating this underground with its roots, the tree interacts and changes this world. Deeply anchored in the earth's darkest realms, the tree grows its trunk into one opposite element. It carries branches with needles or leaves, flowers and fruit upwards into the sky towards the light of the sun. An exact mirror image to the roots in the soil, the leaves and needles interact with light, air, wind and weather. Trees impact the physical and chemical levels by absorbing carbon monoxide and producing oxygen. It also affects the sensory world of humans, animals and plants by its form, color and sound.

Of what practical value is it for builders and buyers to know about the secret life of trees? From an ecological building point of view, we know that untreated wood is a breathing building material; it absorbs, retains and releases moisture. It makes contact with us humans via our senses. We perceive its color, form and the spirit which has worked it.

A piece of furniture or floor can have a calming, uplifting, joyous effect and supply us with energy. It also can be frustrating, worrying and weakening. Crucial here is the question: what has been done to the wood. How was it treated and worked with?

To harvest a tree doesn't mean to kill it. The falling of a mature tree is part of the natural cycle. The decay to humus is the basis of existence for the next generation.

This brings us to the conclusion:

Trees are living beings and they connect the divine air element with the earthy, dense and dark energies of the soil. It is possible to work with wood in ways where synthetic chemicals are not needed. Natural wood can last for hundreds of years and after its usage it still can be safely returned to nature. As ash and mulch it provides nutrients for the next generation of trees and the natural cycle closes.

If you are a mother looking for toys for your children, a builder, worker, architect, wood sawyer or forester in the forest, we all can work on this huge task from our point of view. By consciously working with nature, we enrich, enliven and keep her riches for our children. Embracing the gift of our forests is the easy way to bring the mystery of trees into our hearts. Enjoyment, fulfillment and finding our own mystery will be our reward.