I spent the entire winter dreaming of this very view! This time of year makes me feel incredibly good. Whenever I don't feel spiritually well, I come here to walk and spend time with nature and animals. Although I am normally someone who struggles to focus and cannot stay in one place for long, I completely lose track of time here. I press my feet against the earth, accompanied by the sound of birds and the gentle breeze. Lately, this is the only thing that truly calms me down.
People living in the city will understand exactly what I mean. The sound of horns, the smell of exhaust, the crowds... sometimes I find it hard even to breathe. Occasionally, I want to escape and settle in a small town, but leaving this city where I was born and raised feels like saying goodbye to someone I love. This city feels toxic yet real to me. So, I find the remedy by escaping here frequently. There are hundreds of trees here, but every time I come, I sit under the same one. This tree has no special features that distinguish it from the others; in fact, it is even scrawnier and less flashy. The only thing that makes it special is that once, without knowing where I was walking, I took refuge under a tree while crying. In that quiet place where no one sees or passes by, that scrawny, humble tree became my home that day, and I could never let it go again. Among hundreds of trees, I can recognize it instantly even in a crowd. I greet it when I arrive and say goodbye by hugging it when I leave. After a while, I became so attached to it that I started to think I was losing my mind.
I have loved nature and animals since childhood anyway. But for the first time, I am experiencing "love" with a tree. Of course, this is not like the love felt for the opposite sex. This is like love for the Divine! Pure, silent, and innocent... I talk to it every day, but our conversations have progressed so much now that the time I spend there is increasing; it's as if time itself is being pulled away. Sometimes I tell it my troubles, sometimes my dreams, and I promise that when my dreams come true and I leave this place, I will visit it at every opportunity. It is very silent, but the feeling of being understood that I get when talking to it is something no human has ever given me. It's as if it's aware of everything and silently supporting me. When I hug it, I feel so relaxed, so free, and so divine that it is impossible to find this feeling in a human! The last time I felt this way was when I hugged my dog.
Those who read this might say, "Oh, what a sensitive and romantic girl." Actually, I’m not—at least, those who know me from the outside wouldn't think so—because I only experience this in nature. I lose myself there, as if I become one with the earth and nature and blend into them. This is a magnificent feeling! In fact, sometimes I experience such a deep sense of fulfillment there that I want to scream, "This is what it means to be alive!"
No, I haven't gone mad!
I just found where I belong. I remembered my essence. I have always been a well-loved and respected person, always valued by everyone, but I never felt truly "full." There was a huge void in my soul. To fill that void, I settled for fake loves and sought healing in the wrong places. Now, in my world, it doesn't matter much how things are. Did I experience something bad? I know exactly where to go to recharge!
I hope everyone searching finds their healing at the right door and brings their soul to fulfillment. Please, if you have never hugged a tree or if you see this as madness, try it objectively a few times; give it a chance and give it some time. I found what I was looking for here; if your soul is in pain, perhaps what you are looking for is there too. Please give it a chance. Best regards...
Note: The original text was written by me in Turkish, and I used AI to assist with the translation to reach a wider audience.
🌸🌈🐕 🌲