Month: March 2024

Family Style

Posted on by Tom Kelly

I recently returned from a 16-day trip to the United States, visiting 11 states and districts.

From our first step(s) south, there was an easy feeling that continued for the remainder of our trip.

Why is this notable? Because from where I live in Canada, the US is portrayed as a nation in crisis, divided on every level, yet this was not my experience.

I’ve struggled to write about my experience because so much information wanted to be expressed, yet the story was not complicated. Boiling syrup to get something sweet has been my challenge.

It forced looking at America and feeling into this brotherly dynamic we share. Looking at the deep roots that connect us and how we’ve grown to become who we are.

We are both free and sovereign nations, yet we express our freedom and liberty quite differently.

What I was expecting to see in the US were cracks in the fabric of this deeply patriotic nation and yet there were seemingly none. Back home in Canada cracks are everywhere, so what was happening?

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Different Stripes (message from the guides)

Posted on by Tom Kelly

Earlier this week I received this message

The initial words the guides provided were “Don’t overlook the importance of working folk, the people who get dirty for a living. These people are the muscle behind what gets done and we praise their hard work. Without this strength and charisma, your world would be very different. You need to understand this so you don’t lose it.”

When I heard this I smiled. Blue collar hands-on jobs were always fun for me. You knew the people around you and could feel into their lives, there were no secrets. You knew when someone needed support and it was offered wholeheartedly. Material things rarely meant much but everything else did.

In recent years without the same capacity in manufacturing, I re-trained and shifted gears leading to a completely different dimension of work. I missed the big booming personalities on the shop floor of which I was one.

The guides continued, showing me people waiting for buses, carrying their lunch, and sitting peacefully looking forward to the day ahead. They showed me a very independent group who had the strength and ferocity to live without complaint. These people know who they are, what they stand for when to bust a friend’s balls, and when to stand down.

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Beech, The Tree of Breath

Posted on by Tom Kelly
Beech tree leaves in fall
Beech tree leaves in fall

If you are looking for relief from congestion or simply to open your breath, Beech is the tree for you.

Walking the forest I first noticed this in 2020 and since I have continued to engage with this wonderful tree.

The Beech is found in forests in North America, somewhat less as a tree planted on properties. Its smooth trunk gives it away. It also does not shed its leaves in winter showing a golden color in the forest. Its leaves are almond-shaped with small spikes along the outer edges, reaching 3-6 inches in length.

I noticed this extraordinary gift on a beautiful spring day. It was warm and I stepped off the trail into a small group of trees in the shade. As I placed my hand on a young Beech tree maybe 20 years old I found it cool to the touch. I immediately sensed a wave of fresh cool air around the tree where I was standing and breathed this air in. It cooled my entire body and my lungs allowing more capacity and expansion of the airway. After several breaths, I stepped away from the tree and then back into its space again placing my hand on the trunk. I felt the same sensation which had not been as strong when I stepped away.

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All of Us

Posted on by Tom Kelly

I’m back from 2 weeks in the United States.

The trip was amazing! So many messages came in.

Today, I can share something that came in as a direct message.

Part of my trip led me to some large cities and the downtown core. Normally I would resist being in large cities, especially downtown, but there was something there to witness.

People were coming and going, looking at phones, trying to get places, and not seeming to experience much of what I consider the totality or expansiveness of life or the world around them. At first, I was curious to watch, and then I felt saddened.

What I saw over and over was a working machine that I couldn’t understand. People were the inner workings of this machine. The buildings around us were built to allow a machine to operate, to master the art of doing.

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