A Half-Built Garden

by Ruthanna Emrys

When I think of a tree, I think of moving between the branches, and how whenever I reach out I find a new branch that takes me where I need to go. The universe is the same way. If you reach out, you’ll eventually grasp the next branch. Sometimes people reach in the wrong direction, or miss their grip, or find a dead stick that cracks, but that’s not the tree’s fault. There’s always a next branch, you just need to find it.

we grasped, and swung, and found our new perch together. And there’s something in the universe, a principle or a force or an awareness, that makes sure that there will always be a next branch. Not everyone agrees on what it is, but everyone respects it. You could translate it as god, or chi, or—” Here he used a couple of human words I didn’t recognize. “I tend to think of it as a force. One that listens, but answers in branches, not in words.”

the fundamental complexity of a planet didn’t go away because you were standing on a manmade structure.

our ancestors recognized that one of their mistakes had been forcing career obligations into every part of life. Without that time to relax, to focus elsewhere, it was hard to know when situations at work needed changing. We’re passionate about our careers, but now we also value having sacred space where it can’t intrude.”