Shedding the past

 A walk in nature can bring many lessons if you open your mind to the metaphor. Nature has a way of speaking to us, teaching us valuable insights about life and ourselves.

Shedding bark

As a eucalyptus tree matures, its circumference grows, causing the outer bark to tighten and become constrictive. To accommodate the tree’s growth and allow the trunk to expand, the tree sheds its outer layer of bark.

Imagine...

Close your eyes and reflect on nature’s wisdom by imagining a flip-chart positioned in the middle of your mind. Envision yourself reaching for pens in an array of colours to record every opportunity, thought, and plan that you come across. Allow the page to fill up with different colours, each colour representing a different activity you engage in throughout the day and the year.

Imagine the sound of a pen scratching against the paper as you record the names of individuals you meet, emotions you feel, and the rollercoaster of failures and successes you encounter.

As the days become weeks, and the year progresses, the page becomes crowded. Words overlap and intertwine.

Now, imagine further that the year ends.

Releasing what doesn't matter

See yourself tearing off the overflowing page and setting it alight. As it burns, it releases a faint scent of smoke that carries away the words of the past. Just like fallen bark that decomposes into nourishing foliage, your past experiences have shaped you, imparting valuable lessons and emotions. They have fertilized your soul, allowing you to grow and thrive.

Jot down relevant things in your life

With a New Year comes a fresh start. Soon, you will fill the blank page with the names of the people and plans that mattered to you in the past year. The reason for this is that they are still very much involved in your life. You will leave behind the irrelevant names or events from your past in the ashes.

If the eucalyptus tree could not shed its bark, it could not grow. Likewise, when we don't shed the past, refuse to tear off that page, we become trapped in a cycle of stagnation. A memory is like a photograph taken in the past. It captures a moment in time, but you can never bring that moment back to life. People in a photo change. They age, evolve in their views, and may no longer be in sync with your views. When you leave a place, friends become acquaintances who become distant memories. Only the ones with whom you shared a special bond will remain friends. While we ponder over the nostalgic memories we have of acquaintances who don’t think of us, the opportunities in the present slip away, leaving the now to be unlived.

New growth comes from shedding

Embrace the wisdom of the trees and learn that growth comes from shedding the old and embracing the new.