Tandlewood

2nd December 2008

I like trees. In the Spring I like their vitality, in the Summer I like their cool shade, in the Autumn the colour is king but I think they photograph best in the winter.

In the Winter, trees show their structure and with that their age and majesty.

These trees are older than me and will see my passing too and I respect them for that.

I have another reason for liking these trees, last year they gave me a picture that won 2nd prize in the Landscape Photographer of the Year Awards, but that is not my only reason for loving this bit of old beech woodland.

It’s something about the structure of the wood, the way the trees seem to link their limbs together as they rise above the Earth.

It reminds me how connected things are on this planet, us included.

It’s common for us to think that we own this World and can do anything we want with it, but people are only just starting to understand that nature has it’s own checks and balances.

Global warning is becoming a very real threat to our existence on this planet because we have upset that balance, but I think the thing that is often missed when the matter is discussed or argued about is that the planet will still be here, some of the species will still be here, maybe mankind will still be here but our power hungry, resource driven society cannot last for ever if it carries on as it has done.

I wonder if this wood will still be here after we’ve all gone, or will it just feed the last flames of humanities fires.