The Way Trees Grow

My elementary school art teacher didn’t like my trees.

Tree branches at boyce thompson arboretum

The drawing I had been working on was of a whole forest of them – with trunks that were bent and twisted all different directions.

Palo verdes at arboretum

“Trees grow straight up and down,” she criticized. “Not like that.” She made me start my drawing over.

I remembered this while I was hiking recently.

Bent palm tree

And I wanted to laugh every time I passed yet another example of nature showing that I had been correct all along.

BTA tree

 




Microblog Mondays: Write in your own space

Find more trees over at Happiness and Food’s Tree Love Thursdays!

3 Replies to “The Way Trees Grow”

  1. I love this! My favourite trees – pohutukawa – are all twisty and don’t go straight up and down at all. Where did the teacher grow up, somewhere without trees?

  2. I love trees and I love your collection here. Now I’ll also laugh each time I walk by a tree that’s not growing ‘straight up and down’ :D

  3. SO MUCH LOVE for this. Imagine what it says about the narrowness of that teacher’s life. What on earth… I love all the twistiness of real trees. Never saw a perfectly straight, up and down one in my life. Even redwoods aren’t perfectly straight! Gorgeous photos. Twisty and curved things are far more interesting.

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