Conserve Trees

We people live on a wonderful planet, a place where life exists. We're lucky to live with air to breathe in, clean water, and fertile land for planting. One of the best creations here on our Mother Earth is the tree. We all know that trees protect us from the heat of the sun, against strong winds and holds the land that minimizes flood. Trees are very important, you may not see it, but it is true.

As a person that cares for Nature, I'm so happy that I'm lucky to be surrounded by trees. No wonder, these trees protect me and my family against anything. And guess what, these trees around me lived for years before I was born. Yes! My grandmother (my father's mom) planted them when she was still young and alive.

“You'll need these trees when you grow up, in the future.”

She said to her children.

And she was right, these trees gave us undeniable safety. From the shade it gives, to the branches it provides. These mahogany trees are standing tall beside our house, and we make its fallen branches into firewood.

Last month, as the country faced strong typhoons, negligence of the importance of trees can be seen. Vast floods affected many places, not only those who were hit by the storm signal but even the places here in the province which has no connection to the typhoon.

A report showed how the northern part of Visayas was flooded with a strong and massive current of water. And what're the residents keep on blaming? The denuded mountains, where. trees were cut and made into charcoal and were replaced with corns and sugarcanes. Oh, people! How can the corns and sugarcanes hold the ground tighter? They were after the money, the money from the yield of those crops but what about their safety? They didn't have ideas that those flooding could certainly occur.

Honestly, one of the things my locality is well known for was the highways with trees on its borders. You'll enjoy the ride while passing the road going to our municipality.

I still recalled the time where we had our school activities on that highway. Our teachers told us to bring trees to be planted on the roadside. We enjoyed our tree planting activities at that time. I can still remember the laughter my classmates and I have shared that day. And every time my father and I went to the city, we rode on a jeepney, and that jeepney will pass to that road. So, as a proud tree planter, I will point and show with my father the tree I've planted along the way.

Also, you can read there a poem written by Joyce Kilmer, titled “Trees”. Here's a lovely poem with a wonderful message.

I think that I shall never see

A poem is lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest

Against the sweet earth's flowing breast;

A tree that looks at God all day,

And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in summer wear

A nest of robins in her hair;

Upon whose bosom snow has lain;

Who intimately lives with rain.

Poems are made by fools like me,

But only God can make a tree.

Each passage was written in painted plywood and was pinned in each tree on the way. I enjoyed reading these texts while passing through them. It's something that we, the residents could be proud of. I saw people, tourists or not, were mesmerized and fascinated while passing on our highways through their positive and kind words from their social media posts.

But everything has changed, in just a blink of an eye, those trees were gone. They were cut and slaughtered. Road widening took over the path. As the government wanted to have wider highways, those trees should be eliminated, and that's what happened.

See how the greens turned into a dead picture. Poor trees, poor people, but we can't do anything about it. Despite the petitions, they still make their projects without delays. However, some people said that the trees must be cut most especially if they were at the roadside. They are one of the reasons for road accidents too. Maybe that's the main reason why they chopped those tall greens along the way.

But we have a nice and hardworking local government. Yes, they get rid of those trees but they replaced them with new ones, but in different places.

The mayor (in stripes) and the governor (in blue colored polo shirt) conducted tree planting activities on the same date but with different locations.

Planting trees might be boring for others. Surely, planting ornamentals, flowering plants, shrubs are more enjoyable at home, but never forget the one that protects us, safeguards us from different calamities, the strong and tall trees. Though they may fall and pull by the powerful typhoons, still their presence is very crucial.

Why plant trees?

Trees are significant to us in a lot of ways and we cannot disregard their importance. They are vital because they give us fresh air to breathe, food to eat, and shelter/shade from sunlight and rainfall. Aside from what I've spoken of above, here are some reasons why you should plant trees in your community.

Trees help to clean the air we breathe. Through their leaves and bark, they immerse in harmful and toxic pollutants and release clean oxygen for us to inhale.

A tree is a home for the other living. Even a single tree can be home to hundreds of species of insect, fungi, moss, mammals, and plants. Without trees, some creatures most especially forest creatures would have nowhere to call home.

Trees are natural mood boosters. They help lessen stress and anxiety and enable us to reconnect with nature. I truly love the peace and calmness trees and nature itself could give me. Hearing those chirping of birds from above singing like fairies, with a melody of the wind, truly a serenity.

Trees help cool the planet. Yes, it can by sucking in and stocking harmful greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide into their trunks, branches, and leaves, and by sending out oxygen back into the atmosphere.

As a mom, I always speak to my son about the importance of trees. I remember when he was still two years old, his grandfather and him planted some trees in the backyard, and they put a fence to it. So sad that I didn't take a photo of it. But I know, he knows and understands why trees have a connection in his life. I want him to be well educated, most especially about nature. We're only living on only one planet, and trees play significantly to sustain life.

As the years pass by, technology and modern ways of living may dramatically go up, it isn't bad if we want to be more efficient and productive by the means of technologies, but we should never forget and ignore why trees are there. As the poem of Joyce Kilmer said, “Only God can make a tree.”

So, protect, conserve, and be educated about trees. It will not only profit and benefit you and your family but also your future and further generation.

@eommaZel ✍🏻🥀