Once upon a time there lived a Gardener who watered a withered Tree. Each morning he would get up, take his tattered watering can from a shelf and go to water the Tree.
The Gardener planted many trees in his lifetime but this was a special tree.
When the Gardener was a little boy a Fairy visited his garden and handed him a young Tree.
‘Here is a gift for you. This Tree has special powers, an eternal spark of a Divine healing, joy and fulness of Life. Take care of the Tree and the Tree will take care of you. Plant the Tree and enjoy watching it grow. The Tree will give you much fruit; eat some and preserve some by making jam and dry fruit and the Tree will feed you for a lifetime.
But this is just a beginning, for you are only a guardian of the Tree. This Tree is truly meant to help many people to heal.
At Tree’s prime capture that energy of Full Life, that elusive moment of perfection and pure joy by taking a tiny drop of the Tree’s sap and adding it to your paints. Paint a beautiful picture of the Tree and put the Picture on your best wall. This is a Healing Tree and the picture of it will retain its special powers making it immortal.
The Tree itself will run its course and wither. You will be very very sad but let it happen. With gratitude make a bonfire from its dry branches out in a big open field. Choose the best day for the bonfire so the sparks from the fire will fly high up and can be seen from afar. The sparks will then enrich the soil all around.
Tree’s true power captured in the picture will grow with time. Look at the picture to celebrate life of the Tree and rejoice in gratitude of being its guardian. Let the picture be seen by everyone who needs healing and this will be your greatest gift to others during your lifetime.
Keep the picture in an open view letting its healing powers emanate freely.’
With that the Fairy clapped her hands and disappeared.
The boy was amazed and grateful. He planted the Tree and dedicated himself fully to looking after it. The Tree grew bigger and more beautiful by the day and soon it bore abundant fruit as expected.
At it’s prime, the boy painted the picture of the Tree and put it on a biggest shelf in the brightest place of his house.
His pantry was full of jars with jam and dried fruits so abundant it would last him a lifetime. He spent endless hours admiring beauty of his magical Tree.
Now a young man, the Gardener got so preoccupied by communion with the Tree that he forgot all about the rest of the Fairy’s words.
One day the Tree suddenly stopped bearing fruit and began to wither. Alarmed, the Gardener watered and watered the Tree but nothing helped. The Tree withered and no amount of clean water and pure love changed it.
Heart-broken, the Gardener kept watering, prayed and sought help for the Tree, and finally sank into a deep sadness.
Growing old and weary, every day the Gardener would still get up, take his tattered watering can from the shelf and perform his comforting ritual.
One day, a Traveller stopped by the Gardener’s house.
‘I was told that here I can see a picture of The Healing Tree. I’m ill. I’m here to seek healing. There are more people coming soon as everyone now knows that this is a special place’.
The Gardener shook his head.
‘Clearly, – he thought – the man must have confused me with somebody else’.
Silently he stretched his body cramped with sadness and crippled with arthritis, took his tattered watering can from the shelf and went to water his withered Tree.
Coming alive under beams of sunlight the Painting of the Tree quietly extended it’s healing powers to an exhausted Traveler.
Writing by Irina Kotlar
Related Reading:
