I love this Leunig cartoon, "A Herbal Remedy for Lifeache".

(Image pilfered from some webpage, I'm afraid I don't know which of his books it's from, if any, it's not in any of the 3 I have, but Leunig has created lots of books!)


I think I have a chronic case of lifeache. It may be incurable, but trees help.

This poem by Nancy Wood has brought me great comfort:

You shall ask
What good are the dead leaves
And I will tell you
They nourish the sore earth.
You shall ask
What reason is there for winter
And I will tell you
To bring about new leaves.
You shall ask
Why are the leaves so green
And I will tell you
Because they are rich with life.
You shall ask
Why must summer end
And I will tell you
So that the leaves can die.

(From Life Prayers)

I also love this hymn:

Jesus comes to me as a springtime tree
and I receive him as a springtime tree
Fragrant the blossoming of the child
fresh with laughter, free and wild
and carrying the green of summer.

Jesus comes to me as a summer tree
and I receive him as a summer tree
Warm in the sun and richly laid
with patterns of growth through light and shade
and carrying the fire of autumn

Jesus comes to me as an autumn tree
and I receive him as an autumn tree
Seasons of ripeness, brightly ablaze
like a torch in the quietness of closing days
and carrying the wood of winter.

Jesus comes to me as a winter tree
and I receive him as a winter tree
Gentle the cross and gentle the snow
gentle the path where he and I go
carrying the buds of spring.

(from Alelluia Aotearoa)

So that is why I have called these pages "The Winter Tree". To remind myself that sometimes the leaves must die.

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