When you
gaze out your window — real or figurative — do you see the forest first, or the
trees?
Both real
and figuratively, I tend to see the trees first. My current backyard is full of them. In fact,
we are backed by at least 200 feet of protected wetlands full of trees. We chose this house partially because of that.
We wanted a natural back yard and the privacy it provides. Whenever I sit out on our back deck, I can
hear the birds in the forest, and at night, frogs crock their raucous
songs. These are the small details I see
and listen for. It’s not that I don’t “get” the big picture of the forest as a
whole, but I prefer to focus on the details.
It’s like
working with children. Of course, we all know the big picture in child care
settings it to keep the children safe while their parents are at work (that’s
the forest), but each child is so unique (the trees) that you cannot always
keep them safe using the same methods with everyone. And you have to get to know them individually
to understand how to best nurture and help them acquire the emotional, social,
and cognitive skills they will need to succeed in the world. That’s the fun part. If we always just focus
on the forest, we take a lot of the fun out of our lives. The details (getting to know who and what is
in the forest) attach us to it and give us the desire to want to take care of
it with love and loyalty to the things that exist within the big picture. So,
as important as it is to occasionally step back and see the forest as a whole,
it doesn’t mean anything for the long-term existence of the forest if we never
see the trees.
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