I came upon this scene in the forest while hiking with some close friends of mine. The trees rose up into the sky, the light filtered through the canopy above. The sound of water trickling down a nearby stream filled our ears, and a breeze swooshed through the branches every now and then, filling my body with a sense of calm and vitality. Surrounded by giants, we hiked together, sharing stories, laughter, and footsteps along the path. I've been friends with these guys for about ten years now. Sometimes later in life, as we grow older, it can be challenging to establish new meaningful nourishing friendships, but when you do find your peeps, it’s like coming home to family.
In the painting there are two trees intertwining around each other, growing together over the years, one influencing the other, supporting, nourishing the other. They grow together, two separate beings, but intwined as one. Below them, just beginning its life, the sapling under their watchful gaze, starts its journey toward the sun. The plants, trees, and animals in the forest nourish each other in a symbiotic relationship of birth, life, and death, coexisting along side each other in a never-ending cycle of sustainable living. We modern day humans have much to learn from the forest.