Trees – what do they mean to you? Do you even notice them? Maybe you’re so used to trees as part of the scenery you don’t ever think about them.
But I bet you noticed trees when you were a child! They’re so enchanting to young minds.
I loved Enid Blyton’s The Magic Faraway Tree where Moonface and friends lived. Their adventures in foreign lands above the treetop cloud called out to me. I longed to experience these places with the tree folk and spend the night in a circular tree trunk house.
And then there was Narnia. Who wouldn’t want to befriend Mr Tumnus and other forest dwellers then go whooshing through winter woodlands sledging after the white witch?
Yes. Exciting adventures can always be found in the forest.
I urge you this autumn to get in touch with your childhood again (with or without kids) and get into the woods. You’ll feel amazing.
So why are trees so great?
For lots of reasons. Firstly trees are good for you. But they’re also great fun, good educators and rather tasty. In this post, the first of a series, we’ll look at the fun stuff you can do in and around trees…
1. Tree climbing
One of my favourite things as a child was tree climbing. Heck, when I had to draw a tree for my art homework I was the only one to provide a view through the branches from the top! There was something about the challenge; twisting my body to fit through gaps, stretching to reach the next branch all while balancing precariously on a maybe-not-so-sturdy twig! But the sense of achievement on reaching the top (or at least being higher than anyone else – ha!) meant the bruised knees and grazed elbows were well worth it. Whoop whoop, I’m the king of the jungle!
But it doesn’t have to stop after childhood…
More and more people today, from all walks of life, enjoy recreational tree climbing. Exploring some of the country’s biggest, oldest trees using methods devised by tree surgeons and seeing the woods from a different angle is certainly an experience. Just think of David Attenborough camping overnight among the branches in the Amazonian jungle. (I wonder if he read The Magic Faraway Tree…)
And then, there’s getting down.
Sure, you could climb, but why not whizz instead? Good outdoor adventure centres often have a whole host of treetop experiences including zip wires. Zooming through the treetops you’ll experience pure, exhilarating adrenalin. What a way to feel alive and free. Whoosh!
2. Woodland adventures
There are so many other woodland adventures you can have too. You could camp and cook outdoors like the Swallows and Amazons, create your own fantasy worlds where trees come alive, fairies flit about and only you have the power to save the world. And can you actually walk past a tree without seeing a monster in it?
You can get creative with leaves, branches and other woodland delights. Why not make some leaf art on the forest floor, crush up fruits and leaves to make dyes then paint pictures with twig brushes, collect leaves and press them to make greeting cards or turn foliage into seasonal wreaths and decorations? The Imagination Tree has some great autumn leaf ideas.
And there are plenty of woodland games to choose from. It’s the perfect time of year for conkers, the seeds of Horse Chestnut trees. I can’t resist picking up these smooth, shiny balls of loveliness, but watch they don’t smack you on the head as they drop off the branches.
Maybe you’d prefer to whack the heck out of conkers instead! Yes, it’s the season for that most traditional of children’s games. If you’re really into it you could even enter the world conker championships, October 13th this year in the Northamptonshire village of Southwick.
Some woodland games and activities I’ve enjoyed at Forest School were making musical instruments out of natural objects, playing hide and seek (being outside is so much better than hiding in a cupboard!), going on bug hunts, playing tracking games and racing twig rafts down a woodland stream. For lots of ideas have a look at the Woodland Trust’s Nature Detectives.
Will you rustle with praise along with the trees?
And you know what all this means? God is good fun. It’s easy to have adventures in his Creation and to connect with Him. My recent psalm, based on an excellent hammocking adventure, explores this.
Being with trees is truly life-giving. So let’s “rustle with praise before the Lord” just as the trees do (1 Chron 16: 33).
God bless xx