Life has a rhythm all it’s own.

We have our daughter’s puppy for a period of time while she does some
traveling. I love this puppy so it was easy to say yes when she asked us if
we’d care for her.

Part of caring for a dog is ensuring they get out for a daily walk.

This little one certainly makes sure she is well cared for.

As I prepared for my third walk of the day, not to the lake this time, I noticed that the wind had
begun to pick up. Donning warmer gear we headed out the door.

It’s never a bad walk with a puppy. They make it impossible to be unhappy.
Well at least that’s my experience. This dog makes me laugh with all her antics
and that sure makes me feel good.

During this windy walk I had the chance to see some really big, beautiful old
pine and spruce trees. They were graceful and elegant and, upon further
inspection, it looked like they were dancing in the wind: boughs moving ever so
intricately as the wind moved through them: it was quite beautiful.

Did you ever go to a high school dance? How awkward was that? I don’t know
about you but ours were always slow to start as nobody wanted to be the first on
the dance floor. Talk about a long night.

Well these trees didn’t care at all  who was first or second or better or worse at the dancing. They just
danced right along with the wind, swirling and twirling.

I took a dance class recently. It’s called NIA. It’s a mixture of martial arts, yoga and dance movements.

You get to make up your own rhythm during part of the class: very hands on, very experiential, move to your own rhythms to the sounds and the energy. I loved that class. I think these trees may have taught the teacher some of the moves she had.When things flow smoothly they feel good, sometimes, and when they don’t move so well times can feel pretty hard.

I watched those trees and wondered what lessons we could learn from them.

Here’s what I came up with:

1. Go where the wind takes you.
2. Bend when necessary.
3. Don’t worry about what anybody else is doing: be yourself.
4. Move to your own rhythm.

(Sounds like pretty good advice to me.)

Next time you see a tree dancing in the wind stop and watch for a second, you might be pleasantly surprised.

~

Editor: Kate Bartolotta.