10-13-2025
An inconvenient tree
An ancient, big ficus tree got trimmed today on my street. As I was asking the workers why they cut so many healthy branches, a middle age man who lived in the building in front of the tree, joined the conversation.
‘Thank God they cut it. And I can’t wait for them to cut the entire tree down. This tree is way too big, it should be in a jungle, not on our street.”
I told the man that the tree had been there decades longer than his thick gray, dull, modern apartment building (that, incidentally, replaced a charming little house.) The man rolled his eyes and just kept going, telling us that the tree had always been inconvenient. And kept repeating he had more rights than the tree, because he was paying to live in that building.
I told him the tree was not simply a visual backdrop, but a living being with a spirit, but the man, obviously not used to being spiritually challenged, just dismissed me and turned around, to chit chat with the workers.
Indifference disguised as care
Ironically enough, this man was also an unmistakable climate change supporter. Yet, while directly confronted to nature, he showed no connection to a magnificent tree, that happens to live right in front of his window. Just like the social justice people who defend migrants, but would never open their house to a homeless person, this climate conscious progressive man showed complete indifference and even contempt for the very life of an old soulful tree. The truth is that these people are not nature lovers. They are ego-driven political ideologues, who love to show off their moral high ground. And they are also terrorized of dying. So, when they are told, by the experts, that “their” planet is in danger, they don’t feel for nature. They fear for their own lives. Nature is only here to serve them and their little comfort. And they just want to protect it enough, to save themselves.
Unlike the native people, they don’t consider the mineral and vegetable kingdoms with any genuine love or reverence. To them, it’s all rocks and weeds. The same way they consider ‘pest” any wild animal, living in a city. They are deeply indifferent to all life form, if inconvenient to their mundane existence.
Worst than the people who don’t care at all about life outside of their own bubble, are those hypocrites, who brag about being the better humans. At least the other ones are honest about their indifference, and what you see is what you get.