April is the
month in which we celebrate Arbor Day, an annual observance that recognizes the
vital role of trees in our lives and promotes tree planting and care. It was first observed as a holiday in 1872 in
Nebraska, but tree planting is a ritual as old as humans have been alive.
The tree is
seen throughout history and literature as the symbol of life itself. In the words of J. Sterling Morton, a
journalist and the founder of Arbor Day, ““The cultivation of flowers and trees
is the cultivation of the good, the beautiful and the ennobling in man, and for
one, I wish to see this culture become universal.” He and his wife were settlers in Nebraska and
both were lovers of nature; their yard was full of various trees, plants and
flowers.
When J.
Sterling became the editor of the area’s first newspaper, he never missed a
chance to spread his enthusiastic love for trees of all types. His audience was receptive because fellow settlers
missed trees and needed them to help provide a windbreak for their crops,
building materials and shade for livestock and people. As we all know today, that without trees it would be hard for any
living thing to breath; trees oxygenate our Earth.
In 1872, the
Board of Agriculture accepted Morton’s proposal to set aside one specific day
(Arbor Day) to plant trees; they created contests with prizes awarded to
citizens who planted the most trees. It
was an overwhelming success and on April 10th over a million trees were
planted in Nebraska! There are now Arbor
Day festivities observed across the United States, and in many other countries
of the world.
Ways to
Celebrate Arbor Day in Your Community
If you need inspiration,
The Arbor Foundation has a great website (https://www.arborday.org/) with a list of ideas that include…
- · Hold an Arbor Day ceremony and honor good stewards in your community.
- · Organize a Big Tree or Oldest Tree search within your community.
- · Plant a tree.
- · Write a story, produce a play, or present a skit about trees.
- · Choose a public park or downtown area to clean up.
- · Read a book about trees, such as The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein.
- · Schedule classes on tree pruning, tree selection, tree identification and tree planting.
- · Sponsor a poster contest, poetry contest or tree trivia contest.
- · Volunteer with a local tree-planting organization.
One of the first things a
celebrant can help you with is to create sacred space with care and intention;
then you may be asked to think about your favorite tree and what it has meant
to your life. And what you can do to ensure that this tree remains alive and
healthy for generations to come? How can you hold and give it special
recognition on Arbor Day this year? Skilled
in the art of ceremony, a celebrant can help you create a ceremonial ritual
that will fill yo47ur heart with love, and your soul with hope. Visit www.celebrantinstitute.org to find a celebrant in
your area. Happy Spring!
Elaine Voci is a life coach in private practice in Carmel, IN and a graduate of the Celebrant Foundation & Institute . Elaine is the Editor of the Celebrant Blog for the Celebrant Foundation & Institute.
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Life-Cycle Ceremonies: A Handbook for Your Whole Life
How do you commemorate momentous events? Memorialize people who have shaped you? Draw support from those you hold dear? This primer offers methods for honoring the special occasions in your life with humor and grace. Its ceremonies help ground each day in the wholeness that supports our entire lives. Each ceremony has been vetted by a certified Life-Cycle Celebrant® affiliated with the Celebrant Foundation and Institute, which offers training and support for celebrants worldwide. Visit us at www.celebrantInstitute.org.
Please direct all request, comment or concerns about our CF&I Blog to our Social Media Manager ~ Marcia Almeida, Master Life-Cycle Celebrant. at celebrantsocialmedia@gmail.com Or to the Celebrant Foundation & Institute’s director, Charlotte Eulette at: charlotteeulette@celebrantinstitute.org
call us at (973)746-1792.
Visit us at http://www.celebrantinstitute.org/?p=business
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