Dendrophile

Two Cups of Tea at Hope’s Café

In my recent discovery of some particular words unfamiliar to me, I came across dendrophile, one who loves trees.

When we moved from Montana, we had lived in the midst of the woods for thirty years. My husband loved the trees.  Despite there were hundreds, he seemed to have special kinship with each and every one.  He astounded me once when he said “This is my favorite tree.”  Among hundreds, he could pick a favorite?? I always suspected he told all the trees that! He especially loved oak trees.  When we built our house he was very clear with the builder that the only trees to be cut down were those that absolutely had to be in order to clear space for the house.  Those that had to be taken down, he had cut into slabs with pieces of wood in between to air dry.  This began a year of “curing” the planks.   Thus began his furniture making phase.  Our house contains much of his work, to include a china cabinet, of which I am especially fond. 

When we moved to Montana, the landscape seemed so barren to us!  Where were the trees?  When we first moved, one of the church members said “Well, I’ve been to Tennessee and it’s beautiful.  But I got kind of claustrophobic with all those trees.”  We couldn’t imagine.  Now, after three years, we wonder how it will be to go back to Tennessee.  I am aware how much I have come to love the “Big Sky” country.  I seek to drink in this scenery, to imprint it into my memory.  My husband is excited that our new home is a half mile from the oldest state park in Tennessee filled with—take a wild guess—huge oaks! 

“Humans have a long-standing connection to trees, from our earliest ancestral dwellings in wooded areas to our modern-day urban parks and gardens,” as reported in an article in The Encyclopedia of Psychology. “ The human-tree bond has been studied from an evolutionary, cultural, and psychological perspective, with new evidence suggesting that humans can develop an emotional relationship with trees, known as dendrophilia…

“The term ‘dendrophilia’ was coined by anthropologist Wolf D. Storl in 2002 to describe the emotional connection between humans and trees (Storl, 2002). Storl suggested that trees can be seen as ‘living beings’ who can be loved and appreciated, and argued that humans are ‘energetically connected’ to trees and other plants in our environment,” the report states further.

I would say my husband definitely qualifies as a dendrophile!

The invitation is open to share “two cups of tea” anytime at Hope’s Café, or anywhere you share companionship and conversation.

May we be bearers of hope, the “wait staff” of Hope’s Café for each other and all those we encounter.  Shalom, Kate

P.S. I expect to be on hiatus for awhile to get this move accomplished. Hope to see you in a few weeks!