The Wild and I

As a youth I purchased a bonsai from a local garden shop.  I somehow managed to keep the tree alive until finally it died in my college dorm room many years later.  The experience was less than fulfilling.  However, I was still fascinated with bonsai and its mystery.  I began to think they took centuries to grow.  My thoughts on the subject were then set aside.  Life’s adventures took me in other directions.  It was not until the fall of 2003 when after college I moved to Harrisburg Pennsylvania for my first job.  While sitting in my apartment one day I decided to Google bonsai in the local area.  I was looking for a botanical garden with a bonsai collection.  I came across an interesting page, a nursery called Nature’s Way Bonsai.  My first visit to the nursery was like my first day at college.  I couldn’t wait to see what was around the corner.  After viewing every tree in the nursery the questions began to flood in.  To find the answers, I took some good advice and joined the local bonsai club.  I slowly began to understand what it took to keep them alive.  If I knew then the time and dedication required to successfully grow great trees I might never have attempted it.  Thankfully I remained ignorant to what was truly required.  Monthly visits to the nursery rejuvenated by hope at becoming successful.  I began to educate myself through workshops and club demonstrations.  It took about two years to develop the horticultural knowledge and another two years to build a foundation for basic techniques.  Right when I thought I figure it out I was hit by the artistic and philosophical concepts.  This was when my education truly began.  I looked down the rabbit hole and couldn’t see the bottom.  This was a very humbling experience and I realized that it was just the beginning.  I started seeking out literature on subjects which supported the artistic / philosophical aspects of bonsai such as, visual thinking, the golden ratio, Taoism, and Minimalism.  First the artistic side clicked then the philosophical side.  This re-defined how I initially approach a piece of material.  I became much more selective.  I began focusing my efforts.  The natural world became more appealing and I found myself studying simple things like lichen growing on a log or how water flowed over rock.  I began to see subtle connections between other genre of art and my own.  During my 7^th year I soon began to see how blindly I was applying techniques.  I was trying to tell the tree what to do instead of listening and letting the tree guide me where it needed to go.  I soon began to understand that it wasn’t about me, it was about the relationship with the tree.  Trees are living things.  They have needs, wants, and desires.  I began feeling full of creative energy and was looking for an outlet.  I had finally reached a state where I was comfortable with my abilities.  I sought out techniques to achieve goals.  I became interested in other bonsai artists, in what they were doing and how they were thinking.  Now I was interested in the concept not only the tree.  Over time I observed them growing and studied how they perceived the passing of time.  Soon the trees were much more than bonsai. They were the connection between humanity and nature, between the wild and me.   I began to listen.  Once again I began to realize how simple and wonderful life could be.

June 12^th 2012