There is a Vernon group that meets every Sunday at 10 am called The Essentialist Church of Christ. The group was formed well over a quarter of a century ago, based on the spiritual tradition Ahmsta Kebzeh, which is many thousands of years old.  

This week Mary Anne, a long-time member of the group, gave a wonderful talk entitled: "The Tree of Life." 

Mary Anne focused part of her talk based on the book: "Finding the Mother Tree", by Suzanne Simard. 

After growing up in the Monashee Mountains, British Columbia, Suzanne Simard received her PhD in Forest Sciences at Oregon State University. Simard is currently a Professor of Forest Ecology at the University of British Columbia and her book, Finding the Mother Tree, has been gaining international attention. 

Suzanne is known for her work on how trees interact and communicate using below-ground fungal networks, which has led to the recognition that forests have hub trees, or Mother Trees, which are large, highly connected trees that play an important role in the flow of information and resources in a forest. 

The world's fascination with trees even showed up in the movie Oppenheimer. Kurt Gödel—or rather the actor Chris Urbaniak portraying him—appears in one brief scene in the movie Oppenheimer. He has no lines. He is named only by Albert Einstein—played by Tom Conti—regarding Gödel's fear of being poisoned by Nazi spies. In this very short scene in the movie Godel says "trees are the most inspiring structure" and seems like he is barely present mentally. 

Gödel saw the beauty of numbers and associated them with a transcendent order. The structure of trees that he found so inspiring was just one example of the sophisticated tapestry of creation, which he was able to elucidate through mathematical models and contemplation. 

In the end, it is the contemplation on "Who Am I?" that is the most powerful and direct path to peace and joy.  

The Emily Dahl Foundation
March 2025