Tapping into the Radical Power of Trees

Dear Friends,

One evening last week, I had to shut off the NPR broadcast on my kitchen radio. That evening, like many evenings in recent months, the national news was just too much to process; the headlines made me feel sick to my stomach. I stopped chopping onions and headed out for some fresh air.

The light was a rose gold as I walked over to the promenade that overlooked the water. There I was greeted by diamonds of light dancing on the East River. And I noticed the first silky buds had cracked through the bark of low-hanging tree branches. Their splendor was like medicine for my rattled nervous system. Their impossible beauty connected me back to Source and restored my strength

The brisk and bright days of early spring in New York City are such a poignant reminder of the magic in nature. There’s such an alacrity, or readiness, in the impossibly blue sky. And the flowering trees seem almost other-worldly as the bright confetti of their blossoms bursts through.

I sense the incredible sovereignty of the trees at this time of year. They’ll give birth to new life regardless of who reigns in the human realm or what chaos we’ve sown. They offer us a direct experience of truth no matter what disinformation FOX news conjures. And they remind us that there’s a predictable order and cycle to earthly life despite the disordered narratives of our nation states.

I now understand why the ancient Irish worshipped trees. None of us are separate from their life-giving source. We are woven into the same shimmering web. When we align with their cycles and root deeply into the ground of their wisdom, they are a source of solace, strength and steadiness.

A mothering cherry tree named Faith in Sag Harbor, New York.

It's human nature to like trees. Just looking at them can make us feel happier, less stressed, and more creative. When we walk through a grove of trees, we’re showered with chemicals known as phytoncides, known to reduce blood pressure and anxiety. Studies suggest they also increase the pain threshold, and even the expression of anti-cancer proteins.

In recent decades, scientists have also discovered that trees are radically collaborative and extremely intelligent beings. They share nutrients and even send messages to one another through a massive fungal root system known as the mycelial network. Through this underground network, trees tend to ailing trees, fortify and care for the young and vulnerable, and release nutrients into the soil for years after their death.

Trees are also the oldest living beings on the planet. They contain great wisdom and track the circularity of time through their rings. They help purify our water and our air, register changes in their environment, and some studies suggest they can even see!

North America’s Bristlecone Pine is considered to be the oldest living tree. Scientists discovered one bristlecone in California that sprouted 5,062 years ago.

I’ve been imagining fresh ways to bring the medicine of trees and the rest of the natural world into The Meadow, our creative sanctuary in the city. Eco-arts are one way to bypass labels, narratives, and conceptual frameworks about the world we inhabit. The arts can offer a direct, organic experience with truth— the wild magic of the earth. To me, spring is the perfect time of year to pull out my needle books and embroidery floss because embroidery motifs offer a way to record and savor the beauty of the fleeting spring leaves and blossoms.

So many fiber arts, including hand stitching, allow us to enter into conversation with nature. Our fingers come into direct contact with the plants fibers that make up the different threads and fabrics. And hand stitching is a indelible way to begin a relationship with the other-than-human world.

So this spring we’re introducing a new three-part series called Expressive Stitching. We hope you’ll soon discover that hand-stitching is incredibly soothing. In fact, studies have shown the repetitive hand motions involved in fiber arts release oxytocin which is the same chemical the brain releases when we eat chocolate or fall in love. In addition, stitching invites us to move and think at entirely different pace. The practice gets us off our screens and slows us down enough to witness our own thoughts and put them in order.

The Meadow’s Expressive Stitching Series will take place over three Sunday afternoons in March. You can sign up for a single sessions or the whole series as you wish. This first class will introduce you to a basic vocabulary of embroidery stitches. You’ll work with a stitch book to learn how to create stems, chains, leaves, and flowers with a needle and thread. Our first session is on Sunday March 16th from 1 to 3PM.

Part Two of the series involves stitching on personal or found photographs to add a dash of color, interest, or panache to any image. Part Two will take place on Sunday, March 23rd from 1 to 3PM.

Experimental embroidery on found photographs

In the final session of the series, participants will create their own simple organic forms and stitch into linen or hand-crafted paper. The third class in the series will take place on Sunday, March 30th from 1 to 3PM.

Organic Forms on Fabric and Paper

If you’re curious about what it feels like to create with a needle and thread, this series is for you. We’re hoping you’ll discover that fiber arts aren’t an antiquated hobby, or a second class citizen in the art world. Fiber arts are now widely recognized as a legitimate and wonderfully evocative medium of artistic expression. You’re warmly welcome to come to The Meadow and create a hand-made artifact that may just become an enduring treasure.

Until then,

Julie