The Trees Are All A'Twitter

I live in a perpetual campground. This is what I've coined our Flagstaff residence. The windows are big, bright, and open. The living room has a fireplace, four outrageously comfy leather chairs, two large open windows, and comes to a point at the ceiling, like a mini A-frame within the house. We lovingly refer to it as the tent. Here we sit, night after night, listening to the sounds of the forest-birds, dogs, buzzing of bugs-and experience a perpetual campground moment. The cool night air coupled with the fireplace and comfy chairs is enough to quickly draw you in and cause immediate relaxation.

When you're camping in the Arizona forests, there is another noise that is distinctly recognizable. This is the sound of the trees. Now, you may wonder, what? Trees don't make sounds. Cats, they meow. Horses, they neigh. People, they talk. Trees, they stand there and look pretty (except for those all brown suffering from bark beetles...a metaphor for another day). While trees may not have mouths and voices, their tale is ever clear. Trees are catalysts, used by the wind to spin a story. Today, the story is loud and full of mischief. Whoosh! goes the wind, taking no prisoners as it flies through the needles of the pines. Throughout the house a story is being constructed. No, more than a story. The way the wind is blowing, a full on opera is being composed outside these walls.

I wonder what they're saying? The operatic movement has been consistent since sunrise. Sometimes it sounds angry, violent. Others, like right now, it merely strings sentences together, content to sway the day away. You know there are birds out there holding on for dear life. Their songs sound a bit more stressed than usual, concentrating on their nests within the trees, not wanting to start over due to the wind's potential destruction. Its ok, little birds. You are supposed to be high flying, blown from here to there. You like the wind. It does the work for you. You open your wings and soar with the current.

Wouldn't it be great if we all trusted the wind like the birds? Some do, letting it take them to new heights. Others don't, preferring to make their nests on the ground, rather than run the risk of re-building after a blustery day.

Ok, the wind has suddenly dramatically died down and took the conclusion to my metaphor with it. I don't know what I was trying to conclude, so I won't even try.

This is the first blog post I've written in the daylight, I think. My night owl ways are rapidly falling by the wayside this summer. I shouldn't be writing. I should be LSATing. 3 days left. I'm just so tired of thinking about it and stressing over it. I experienced a mini panic attack this week while studying at Barnes and Noble. And to make it worse, a lady came up, sat down next to me, and said rude things just out of the blue. Really? If you don't have anything nice to say, maybe you shouldn't bring your dog in a public business and be rude to those around you. I've stopped studying there, for the most part. I'm to the point where I'm doing full practice tests everyday and I have those here at home. I don't need the strategies as much, and frankly, I'm tired of watching camo gaming guy and jerk reading guy and listening to their gossip about Orthodox Priest man's loud cell-phone voice or NAU girl's use of 2 tables. Deconstructive talk just for the sake of talking is just lame.

I hope the trees are being constructive. Thats what I chose to believe.

Although I was mad and frustrated at LSAT and mean lame men the other day, as I got up to stretch, the guy who's always behind the counter in the cafe asked me how the studying was going. I replied not well, to which he looked genuinely concerned and sympathetic. He then asked me how may days until I took the LSAT (which means he's been watching my studying habits and isn't as weirded out by my daily diet pepsis as I thought he was) and when I replied 5, he gave me a nice smile and said, "when the test day comes, it will all be there. And it'll be worth it." then he handed me my diet pepsi as well as a glimmer of hope for the Barnes and Noble crowd, after all.

Often, you're not aware of what those around you notice. Ever more often, one word or phrase has enough potential to give you renewed life and vigor. Like the wind, which is in full force yet again, you just have to allow yourself to be blown along, and let the whirl create a force around you.

In other news, I now kill spiders and wasps, too.