Saturday, October 19, 2013

Forest in a Box


A friend of mine — a man — is in the hospital, going on day nine, after a long and complicated surgery. All week I've dithered about what to bring him. We women like to bring things to people; I'm guessing it doesn't matter so much to men. Flowers didn't seem quite right. And nothing edible, because of dietary restrictions.

And then this morning I had it: I'd bring him pieces of the woods that he loves so much.

So I ventured off this morning with a paper sack, and snipped and gathered, illegal, I'm sure, as it's city property. Law breaker! Ha.

This is what filled the box:

a big-leaf maple leaf
a vine-leaf maple leaf
sprigs or Douglas fir, cedar, hemlock
a Madrona twig
a salal leaf
an Oregon grape leaf
a mossy rock
two varieties of lichen
a fungus-robed stick

Upon opening, he immediately brought it to his face, and inhaled: forest in a box.

We were both pleased!



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11 comments:

  1. Cro MagnonOctober 19, 2013 at 9:15 PM

    The perfect prezzie. When a friend of mine left the Caribbean, to come to live in France, he was given a 'small pot' by his friends. They'd put everything you could imagine into a pot, with the instructions that it should be sniffed at least once a week. Most of it started to rot quite quickly (Land Crabs etc) so eventually it stayed closed.... but still much admired.

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  2. Claire BeynonOctober 20, 2013 at 2:30 AM

    Perfect, T! Love to you and your freshly re-forested friend x

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  3. My life so farOctober 20, 2013 at 3:04 AM

    What a beautiful gift!

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  4. 37paddingtonOctober 20, 2013 at 5:58 AM

    What an original and wonderful idea!

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  5. FoxessaOctober 20, 2013 at 10:52 AM

    What a lovely thing to think of.

    You are creative in the most deep sense.

    Love, C.

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  6. lillyanneOctober 21, 2013 at 11:49 AM

    Perfection.

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  7. susan t. landryOctober 21, 2013 at 12:00 PM

    this is a brilliant gift! in the hospital, there's so little you can enjoy from your 'real life'--and the sense of smell, especially, is neutered by all the antiseptic surroundings. what a lovely thing to do, T.--so special and caring.

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    Replies
    1. T. October 22, 2013 at 7:13 PM

      Susan, you are so right about the neutered scent in the hospital. Oy. Just thinking about it gives me the willies. (I'd never make it as a nurse.)

      xT.

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  8. ElizabethOctober 26, 2013 at 10:39 PM

    So brilliant and beautiful! I often toy with the idea of bagging some lemons and blossoms from our backyard trees and just sending them to my friends in the east.

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