Lessons about Love and Balance

This morning I woke up very early and couldn’t sleep anymore, so I decided to just lie in my bed and meditate a bit. I had gone through a very difficult break up in the last year, and even though it’s almost a year ago I still haven’t been able to let go of my fears of a new relationship or the new commitments that would come with it.

So this morning I decided to meditate on relationships and love.

Images started forming. I saw myself in a beautiful serene garden, walking barefoot on the grass towards a huge, wonderful tree. I saw myself standing in front of this tree in awe-stricken silence while I was feeling the massive amount of energy this wise old tree was transmitting. I suddenly had the urge to connect to this tree and we started the following conversation:

Me: Good morning tree, you really inspire me. You stand here so alone. There is no other tree anywhere close. Don’t you feel lonely?

Tree: Good morning my dear. How can I possibly feel lonely? I’m connected to everything around me. I’m connected to each single flower or grass around me. I’m connected to the sun, the rain, the winds. I’m connected to the birds that come and seek for protection on my branches. I’m even connected to you right now.

Me: Gosh, that’s right. We are all connected. You seem so wise and above all so loving. What’s your secret?

Tree: I’m over 1000 years old. I have seen a lot of different seasons come and go. The secret you are looking for is “BALANCE”. Balance in giving and receiving love. You humans rarely get this balance right. All you need to do is observe nature. Everything is in perfect balance. Look at me. I’m a tree. I receive love first thing in the morning when the sun rises. My crown starts becoming warm and this warmth wanders down to each branch, to each of my leaves, the cells in my leaves, my trunk and it goes down deep into my roots.

Then, I receive love from each single cloud that arises on the sky. Each cloud gives me a bit of shadow so that I can cool down again and don’t overheat. I receive love from each single rain drop that falls on my leaves and washes away the dust and falls on the earth so it can nourish my roots and revitalise me completely.

I receive love from the winds, they help me move and make my leaves dance. I love when my leaves dance.

In return I give love to all birds, which come and fly on top of my crown and enjoy the view up there. I give love to birds, which come and choose a place to build their nests and take care of their baby birds. I give love to wise owls, which build their homes in my trunk and come out at night. I give love to other animals who lie in my shades, as well as to you humans. I’m an old wise tree. I give love by radiating my massive amounts of energy to all living things.

As you can see, it all happens effortlessly. I receive love and I give it. It’s always in perfect harmony and balance.

Me: Wow, that’s impressive. The way you describe this makes me really wonder about us humans. When I look around me, we are all scared of either loving too much and being hurt or we don’t love at all anymore and prefer to just receive love or whatever we can get without returning anything. I feel I have given so much in the past. I feel a bit empty now.

Tree: That’s normal my dear. Look at the seasons. Just like the cold winter passes each year so will your emptiness pass away as well. You humans need to learn how to be patient. Everything always happens at the right time. In the winter I barely see the sun and I’m very cold. I loose all my lovely leaves, one by one until I’m completely naked. Maybe this is how you feel when you say you feel “empty”. But at the same time I know the sun will come again and I look forward to spring time, when my leaves start growing again and each year I look forward to becoming even more beautiful, bigger and wiser. You humans need to understand that these periods of solitude are needed so you too can grow and become stronger.

Me: You are so right. I can see myself having passed the hardest winter already. I think in a few weeks or month spring might start for me. I can feel it coming and I’m looking forward to it. And in the meantime I will devote all the time I have to myself.

Tree: that’s a wise choice. You humans have forgotten to connect to yourselves. You forget to take some time just for yourselves. You always seem so busy. You are always rushing from one place to the next. You have televisions and radios on all day long. You hoard all your material possessions and are never satisfied with what you have. But the question is: who are you? Who are you outside of your jobs? Who are you when you don’t practice sports or go after your several hobbies? For the women: who are you without make-up, beautiful clothes and shoes? For the men: who are you without your high level jobs, flashy cars and credit cards? Think about it. For me: I’m just a tree. I don’t pretend to be anything else. I stand here, year after year and I’m just me. I just am for I let myself be. You humans have forgotten about this state of “beingness”.

Me: You are so right! We are always defining ourselves by what we do, who we know, how much we earn and what others think of us. We are so busy trying to please everyone around us. I wish we had the courage to all step out of this, start loving ourselves for who we are. I really wish we all could learn how to connect to ourselves. Isn’t it true that we spend thousands of dollars for coaches, shrinks, life and career coaches to tell us who we are or what our life purpose is, when in fact, all we need to do is just be who we are and learn to connect to ourselves. We all know deep down what our life purpose is, and for what we came for. We all know what the lessons are we wanted to learn. We just need to find that inner peace and the ability to connect again.

Tree: You got it. You do it quite well occasionally. But try and do it more often. And be the change you want to see in others. You become what you teach. Seek the balance of love within you. Let your winter fade away and when you are ready, let your brightest light shine. Your summer will attract so many humans with winter in their hearts and your summer will give these people hope. Just like I’m giving you hope right now.

Me: I’m so grateful dear tree. You taught me such a big lesson. And I love how I can just connect to everything around me: To trees, to nature and to learn from you. I will come back to you when I have summer in my heart. Maybe it’s during your winter, so I can warm you up a little. Until then, take care!

Tree: take care, I love you.

Me: I love you too! :-)