Fractals | #ThursdayTreeLove and Repeating Patterns

July 22, 2021July 22, 20216 Comments

Southern Live Oak with Spanish Moss

Nature uses only the longest threads to weave her patterns, so that each small piece of her fabric reveals the organization of the entire tapestry. –Richard P. Feynman

What do fractals and trees have in common? Well, according to the Reflective Educator:

The growth of trees is actually a fairly mathematical process that at least involves fractal theory, graph theory, and topology. You can actually generate very realistic looking trees using a computer.

While my fractal trees look very little like actual trees, they started as a photograph of a Southern Live Oak gloriously embellished with Spanish moss. I captured the tree last weekend just after we entered Louisiana for our very quick road trip to New Orleans (Yes! I finally saw my parents after 16+ months!).

I played around with one style and different looks. Here’s a “macro” version:

Frax-6

And a “micro” version of the same image:

Frax-6b

If you look really closely (with a magnifying glass), you should be able to see how the patterns repeat ad infinitum, getting smaller and smaller and smaller.

Frax-8

Perhaps, if you look with a little imagination, you might be able to see the tree!

I am joining Parul Thakur for #ThursdayTreeLove every second and fourth Thursday of the month. If you would like to play along, post a picture of a tree on your blog and link it back to her latest #treelove post.

Photo Inspiration | Tree

July 15, 2021July 15, 202113 Comments

Tree Quote-1

#ThursdayTreeLove | Granddaddy’s Beard

June 24, 2021June 24, 202115 Comments

Fringe Tree-3

Never say there is nothing beautiful in the world anymore. There is always something to make you wonder in the shape of a tree, the trembling of a leaf. –Albert Schweitzer

I’ve been looking forward to #ThursdayTreeLove all week. I’d intended to spend time in the company of trees this week, but between too hot and too busy, I had to forgo tree therapy. Thankfully, I have a healthy supply of photos for such times.

I “discovered” the tree in this post while walking around Bridge Street Town Centre, an outdoor mall [understatement] here in Huntsville, Alabama. While my son and his peers scurried about solving puzzle after puzzle in a carefully planned (for social distancing) outdoor scavenger hunt, I took advantage of the time to appreciate nature’s offerings. [Thanks, AJ’s mom!]

There were pretty blooms everywhere, but I found this tree captivating–its shape, the “fringes,” its dancing shadow.

Fringe Tree-1

I learned the name of this tree from JoAnna of Anything Is Possible. Also a tree lover who participates in #ThursdayTreeLove, she wrote about the tree a couple of months ago–about two weeks after I first encountered the tree.

The tree, Chionanthus virginicus, is known by many names:

Some people call it grancy graybeard. Others know it as grandfather graybeard, granddaddy’s beard, old-man’s beard, snow flower tree or flowering ash. Botanists, on the other hand, have named it fringe tree (Chionanthus virginicus). –Terry W. Johnson, “Out My Backdoor”

Fringe Tree-2

It’s a beautiful tree. I was surprised to learn it’s not all that uncommon in these parts. In fact, the “grumpy gardener” claims it’s the best native tree that nobody knows. Before I encountered the tree two months ago, I certainly didn’t know.

Fringe Tree-4

Have you seen this tree before?

#ThursdayTreeLove (But It’s Friday) | Between Water and Trees

June 11, 2021June 12, 202116 Comments

Joe Wheeler State Park-1

For I [fully] satisfy the weary soul, and I replenish every languishing and sorrowful person. —Jeremiah 31:25

I spent four days this week working, resting, and resetting in a tiny bit of heaven—between water and trees—at Joe Wheeler State Park in Rogersville, Alabama.

I resisted this work “retreat” because it was…well…more work, and I already had a long list of tasks that wouldn’t get done if I spent time there. My internal tantrums were driving me nuts, so I took a moment to whisper a prayer and ask God to help me change my attitude.

By the last morning, I had to apologize to God for my earlier grumbling. The mornings were work-intensive, but fun and interactive, which is my preferred method of collaborating. I am not a fan of long, long meetings, but I don’t mind getting down to business and doing the work.

Thanks to careful planning, this was the first time (for me) a “work retreat” actually felt like a retreat. I enjoyed the morning meditations, spiritual gems dropped throughout the sessions, the time spent in work groups, and getting to know my brilliant colleagues in a different way.

Most of our afternoons were spent in leisure and recreation, so I was even able to work some of the “long list” referenced earlier.

It rained most of our time there–offering a soothing, steadying rhythm, perfect for the contemplative soul. However, the weather did not hinder encounters with nature. I was able to participate in a two-mile nature hike, deer watch (deer post coming soon), and enjoy the sweet tweets of baby birds as I walked the breezeway from my room to meeting spaces.

Joe Wheeler State Park-3

I had time to sit, write, and think on a balcony with a gorgeous view of Wheeler Lake and time to spend with Sylvia G, one of my dearest friends who has known me since I was a child!

I did not realize the full impact of limited movement for 15 consecutive months on my mental and emotional state until I was able to spend significant time away from my home and campus. My being positioned between all that luscious nature offered the respite I needed to clear some of the cobwebs and move some thoughts forward.

If you know just a little about me, you know I find in trees my most experienced counselors. You also may know that something stirs excitedly inside this NOLA girl–who grew up down the street from the Mississippi River–whenever I am near any body of water.

Joe Wheeler State Park-2b

I’ve been languishing [see previous post]. Of course, the retreat was not planned for me, but God knew I needed a strong dose of therapy, that I needed to be situated between water and trees to truly rest, reset, and hear His voice clearly.

He always delivers, even when I’m standing in my own way.

#ThursdayTreeLove | Golden Flame Tree

May 27, 2021May 27, 20215 Comments

Golden Flame Tree-2

Since today is Thursday, I bring you a bit of tree love for today’s joy break. I’m not usually on campus this time of the year, so I’ve been thoroughly enjoying the transformations of trees I usually only see late summer through early spring.

While taking a short walk to escape the computer screen and the general madness of the day, I couldn’t help but notice the tiny bright yellow blossoms of the Koelreuteria paniculata. The tree, appropriately called the golden flame tree, is certainly a beauty, and I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next.

For now, the flaming yellow flowers against the dark green offer enough joy for the day.

Golden Flame Tree-1

If you’d like to learn more about the tree, here’s an article from Dave’s Garden: Golden Rain Tree: Friend or Foe.

Student Post 4: Guilty, Guilty, Guilty

April 22, 2021April 22, 20215 Comments

We are the earth. We are essentially the earth itself. –Joy Harjo, on poetry

Hello blows through the trees […] Pass this love on […] –Joy Harjo, from pandemic poem

Today is Earth Day and #ThursdayTreeLove! None of my students wrote about trees or the beauty of the earth and our role as its custodians, so I’m giving you a tiny bit of a dogwood I couldn’t resist when I saw its petals against the clear blue sky.

Of course, I’m giving you a little more than that. One of my students shared her response to the Derek Chauvin verdict–guilty on all counts–and I thought about how taking care of the earth includes taking care of humanity. Hatred for, cruelty toward, and even disinterest in humanity are just as destructive as litter, noise pollution, oil spills, and global warming.

Our “sparkly” Jess of Black Modern Thoughts gives us something to think about as she muses over George Floyd’s murder, the route to justice, and the verdict for the former police officer in her post, “guilty”.

#ThursdayTreeLove | The Prayer I Needed

April 8, 20217 Comments

Impressionist Cherry Blossoms

A brief encounter with the cherry blossoms was the prayer my soul needed.

Praying
Mary Oliver

It doesn’t have to be
the blue iris, it could be
weeds in a vacant lot, or a few
small stones; just
pay attention, then patch

a few words together and don’t try
to make them elaborate, this isn’t
a contest but the doorway

into thanks, and a silence in which
another voice may speak.

#ThursdayTreeLove | “The Root of It All”

March 25, 202114 Comments

“Roots,” City Park in New Orleans, Louisiana. Photo by Vaughan M.

It is in the roots, not the branches, that a tree’s greatest strength lies. ― Matshona Dhliwayo

About the image: My hubby shot the tree roots many moons ago at our favorite park in New Orleans, City Park. He shared this photo and other tree roots on his own blog some years ago. I am looking forward to the moment when we can visit the park and–more importantly–our family again.

#ThursdayTreeLove | Precious Joy

March 11, 2021March 25, 202114 Comments

Even though there are signs of spring, many of the trees around me are still skinny, naked, and exposed–shadows of their spring, summer, and early autumn selves.

I thought about those trees this morning as I watched the sun fill the sky, a backdrop for the leafless trees. I contemplated one of the passages of scripture I studied yesterday–

Precious in the sight of the Lord
is the death of His faithful servants. —Psalm 116:15

I turned toward the computer to begin the workday, and my eyes met the pink sticky note on which I had written Psalm 96:12b a couple of weeks ago, anticipating the arrival of spring.

Let all the trees sing for joy.

Somehow, these two Bible verses are connected for me.

Today marks eight years since my little sister was taken from us. It’s strange how my body knows when the date is nearing. The grief and sorrow over the losses of both my sisters [and so many more since] are palpable, but it firms me up to know that God feels each individual loss intimately. We are precious to Him.

Maybe, the verses are connected in my mind because they point to hope.

Hope is in the “spring” of that soon-to-come Great Reunion when the trumpet sounds and those who have fallen asleep in Christ will rise first and meet our Savior (1 Thessalonians 4:12-18). Oh, how we’ll sing and rejoice!

In fact, all the earth will worship, and the trees will sing for joy!

#ThursdayTreeLove | Le Flamboyant

February 11, 202114 Comments

“Le Flamboyant,” 2003, Enel Desir. Acrylic on Canvas.

Isn’t this a stunning work of art?

I pulled “Le Flamboyant,” the image above, from an old agenda that I can’t bring myself to toss because it is beautiful and educational. Though I love the rural scene depicted here, we all know I am drawn to this masterpiece because of the “flamboyant” or flame tree, which dominates this work of Haitian artist Enel Desir.

Enel Desir was born in Cavaillon, a small town in southwest Haiti, and began painting at a very young age. While attending the lycée [high school], he worked various jobs–as a photographer-reporter, a calligrapher, and an illustrator. Under the supervision of a French art teacher, Desir studied the work of such great masters as Velasquez, Renoir, and Rembrandt, which had tremendous influence on his early style.

One of his favorite subjects is the Haitian market scene, which he interprets through his colorful depictions of merchants selling flowers, and his still lifes of local fruits and vegetables. The colors Desir uses–soft green, red, orange, light blue, and yellow–enhance the appearance of the black skin of the human figures in his paintings. In 1991, the art critic Ed McCormack compared Desir with the great Mexican muralist Siqueiros. “Desir,” McCormack said, “creates sophisticated pictorials.”

Desir has participated in numerous worldwide exhibitions; his paintings have always been well received, particularly in the International Exhibition of Seville, Spain (1992) and in South Africa. Very much in demand, his works have been featured on television and in museums, books, magazines, and newspapers around the world. He was a featured artist at the Organization of American States’ exhibit in Haiti, held in Washington, DC, where he resides and paints. –from 365 Days of Black History, IOKTS Productions, published by Pomegranate.

I have had little success with finding more of Desir’s art via the internet. One brief biography of the artist pointed out that though he is a prolific artist compelled to create art, his work is scarce in the marketplace. I did manage to find one other image at the Galerie d’Art Nader of Haiti.

For actual photos of the beautiful flamboyant tree, click here.