In the Company of Trees: Life Lessons in Connection
Every tree tells a story—not just of growth, but of connection, resilience, and unseen support. Trees and plants are the life-givers of our planet, the very lungs of the earth, quietly sustaining us with every breath we take. What if we allowed ourselves to learn from them—to see in their strength and cooperation lessons for our own lives? Imagine what they could teach us about compassion, community, and belonging.
Protecting Your Energy in Shadowy Times
Lately, I’ve been doing my best not to get too caught up in these shadowy days. While it’s important to stay aware of what’s happening beyond our individual lives—because only then can we truly send love, hold compassion, and remain anchored in gratitude—it’s equally important to protect our energy.
As an empath, it can be incredibly difficult not to absorb the sadness, helplessness, and heaviness of it all. At times, I feel overwhelmed by grief, disappointment, and the sheer powerlessness in the face of atrocities unfolding beyond me—sometimes even guilt. I catch myself questioning why I didn’t train to be a medical nurse, a doctor, or someone who could make a more tangible difference. But then I pause. I breathe. And I remember: the key to creating any positive change is to first take care of what is happening within me. Besides, guilt serves no purpose. As Jana Stanfield so beautifully expressed, “I cannot give all the world needs. But the world needs all that I can give.” Doing what we can, in the best way we can, for whom we can—that is what truly matters.
That’s when I consciously shift my mindset. I make a physical effort to bring myself back to the light—to fill my body and energy field with love, healing, and restoration. This practice, which draws on the principles of energy healing, reminds me that wellbeing begins from within.
Lessons in Connection from Trees
Just ten to twenty minutes of self-Reiki can make an enormous difference, helping me return to balance and light. Reflecting on trees offers a special kind of relief and ‘ahhhh’ moment too. Trees remind me what beautiful role models they are for humanity—living proof of quiet collaboration, invisible connection, and the deep truth that we are never truly alone.
It’s easy to see a tree as a solitary being—rooted in its own space, reaching skyward in its own valiant effort. But beneath the surface, a quiet truth unfolds. Tree roots don’t just stay close to home. They travel—sometimes two or three times the width of the canopy—searching, sensing, connecting. Some dive deep, reaching water hidden far underground. Others stretch out wide, crossing paths with their neighbours. And here’s the beautiful part: they often join.
I’m not an expert on trees, I hasten to add, but I’ve always been fascinated by what I’ve learned through reading and observing. For instance, through natural grafting, roots can fuse with others nearby—sharing water, nutrients, and information. Entire groves have been found interlinked, silently supporting each other beneath the forest floor.
And then there’s the mycorrhizal network—a vast underground symbiosis of tree roots and fungi. Scientists such as Suzanne Simard have shown how trees communicate and share resources through these networks, and the phrase ‘wood wide web’ was later coined to describe this remarkable discovery. Through it, trees whisper to one another, sending help where it’s needed, warning of danger, and redistributing nourishment. This is not separation. This is deep, quiet connection—a reminder that life thrives when support flows freely.
Nature, Mindfulness, and Spiritual Reflection
I grew up in the south of England, fortunate to be surrounded by countryside where I could take long walks through the local forests. From my late teens, my parents lived in a house that included a stretch of woodland, part of St Leonard’s Forest—famous for the legend of St Leonard and the Dragon (though that’s a story for another time!). During weekend or longer visits home from college, I would take their dog—a beautiful, highly empathic German Shepherd—and head out into the forest where I could wander among the trees, find space to breathe, and simply be.
There was one particular tree I returned to again and again. A huge, old, beech tree, with a wide, sturdy trunk I could only partly wrap my arms around when I hugged it. To me, that tree felt like an old friend. Whenever I sat beneath its branches, I felt nurtured, loved, and truly heard. And when I was still enough to listen deeply, I could hear the trees’ conversations—their quiet exchanges and whispers carried on the breeze. It was a deeply spiritual experience, a reminder of the unseen life all around us, patiently waiting to be noticed.
This was my personal kind of forest bathing - an activity now widely recognised as a therapeutic practice for chakra healing therapy and overall holistic wellness. By immersing ourselves in nature, we support not only our mental and emotional health but also our energetic balance.
As a Reiki practitioner / teacher, these moments of communion with nature continually deepen my understanding of energy. Reiki has taught me that healing is not only about what we give or receive, but about how we connect—to ourselves, to others, and to the natural world. In the stillness of the trees, I am reminded of the same truth I witness in Reiki practice: that we are all part of one vast, interconnected flow of energy.
Remembering Connection in Our Lives
In a world that often highlights differences, nature reminds me there is another way to be. It calls us to remember the vast network we are all part of and to look beneath the surface—beyond fear, ego, or boundaries—to recognise what has always been true.
There is no separation. Only the illusion of it.
By noticing the root systems that bind us—the unseen threads of kindness, shared experience, compassion, and care—we can anchor ourselves in connection. May we soften into that space, and lean into what connects us—not what divides us.
