The Lyrics From Billys Forest Chapter 208

July 7, 2020I love looking up words in the dictionary. Not to be a “know it all” but to see if we’re using them the way they were meant to be. I love the adventure the dictionary provides by way of how a word began and moved from country to country. I study the different definitions a single word can have. Not because I’m a book worm! I love words! On this podcast episode we look up the word forest. Seriously! In 2020 a lot of building is taking place in cities around the world. What defines a modern forest? The dictionary says is a large area covered chiefly with trees and undergrowth. I’ve lived in a forest for twenty eighty years. Being the forest farmer I agree with the description. I have a large area covered chiefly with trees and undergrowth. But that’s not what this is about. Ballantyne, North Carolina. Huge corporate complex. Millions of Carolinian’s drive by it a year. Building after building. Larger than life streets. When I arrived in 1985 it was a collection of trees. Today, from an outsider’s point of view it looks to have been ripped from its roots. Not only am I a daily writer but I walk every day as well. During these Covid-19 days it’s not going to be on the overcrowded yet beautiful greenways that Charlotte has masterfully designed. I need nobody around me. So at 6:00 in the morning Jazzie and I hit the five unforgettable parks inside the corporate park of Ballantyne. What? Large lakes, trees, waterfalls, wild animals and everything else the dictionary says it must have in order to be a forest. I don’t want this to be a commercial for Ballantyne. The goal is to open your thoughts to the idea of something living and breathing beyond what you are assuming. What looks to be tall buildings where decision makers are trying to save their businesses is physically and mentally connected to a forest that which provides peace. The greatest storyteller’s of all time are trees. Followed by rocks. They know the way. They’ve been here longer than you and ultimately it’s your choice not to hear how to survive the bad storms, hot summer days, wicked nights or the avalanche of bugs that creep into Carolina. Trees know the way. Make today that moment where you just listen. Don’t say anything. Stand next to a tree and just listen. Pay attention to the amazing amount of life around the tree. From the birds to the spiders, squirrels and so much more. Watch as the summer breeze lightly provides the music for the leaves to dance. Feel how the tree provides shade to keep you cool. Be amazed at how the tree doesn’t judge who you are or where you are from. Your front and backyard may actually have one or two trees. Use your imagination and turn it into a forest. Belong to a new atmosphere of peace and Love.