The Girl at CPR, the World’s Oldest Tree, & the Illusion of Public Fame

The first time I noticed her was when she lifted her hand, in my husband and I’s CPR class.

She was asking a question, with her thick hair, and back sitting straight up, listening.

It wasn’t some, “I am trying to be smart” question. Or some, “I am just trying to get attention because I have no life” kind of interruption.

Her questions were thoughtful, considerate, the kind the rest of us should be asking…

If we weren’t sipping Starbucks, or staring off wondering about children.

During the break, I scoot closer to a conversation her and another lady are having.

I talk to my daughter later that evening, and tell her how I used to be shy.

But her eyes widen. She stares blank at me, making me think she doesn’t believe the authenticity of what I am saying.

And I am reminded…None of us are who we used to be.

The lady with the beautiful hair, and hand up at CPR and I , finally start chatting. She mentions blogging, and instantly she hooks me.

“You too?” I hear the words slip out automatically.

“You too”, builds bridges, heart connections, friendships between strangers, intersecting roads prior sojourned separately.

And it can be easy to see differences…but oh, the power in finding that connecting point in, “You too?”

I hear her story about loss, and a little girl, in this class with people just jumping into fostering…others, through the years, coming multiple times…like me and my husband.

And this road to redemption, we have to wonder what it looks like.

THE PANDO TREE

There is a tree, the oldest known tree alive today, called the Pando.

The whole tree system is 106 acres,  weighs 13,000,000 pounds, and has over 40,000 stems (trunks) which die individually, and are replaced by new trucks every 130 years or so.

And yet, the roots of this tree scientist say is, 80,000 years old….yes, 80 THOUSAND years old…

It’s the oldest known living organism, located in the United States. Utah, exactly.

And yet, I think about in this world, how it’s easy to grow tall and high, above the surface…but harder to grow deeper.

How the internet makes it nearly effortless to find a brand, and become a phenomenon….lured into the unfulfilling, Chestire-Cat-of-fame.

The hand-raiser in my CPR class, clearly, wasn’t striving for attention. However, she gave me her blog address, and that night we became friends on Facebook.

That’s when I read a post she shared, about her life as a foster placement. (Read her story here – It will be worth the read, I promise!)

She shares in her post about how she was never adopted and aged out of the system. 

If I had known, I would have asked different questions. Really sat and embraced every aspect as our journey in that class as foster parents…

I mean…do most of us even think about the reality that there are hundreds of thousands of children waiting to be adopted, sitting and waiting in America, hoping for forever families?

And yet, we block the reality of it out of our minds, assuming they are some distant, irrelevant statistics…when if fact, they are real people….

People in the row in front of us…

A neighbor. That person you see at church, or talk to at school, or the grocery store.

We never know another person’s story, unless we open our heart and ears, and are willing to listen.

That person who seems harsh or hateful or just plain vengeful?

Did they ever know love, the kind that builds bridges? Has anyone ever climbed into their shoes, opened up their ears,  listened, to find out what they have experienced?

Maybe our seats wouldn’t be as narrow, our thinking wouldn’t drown us with selfishness…

Maybe nights would be easier knowing we are not alone, hearing another person saying, “You too”?

Or maybe, we just don’t know what real, deep, authenticity is…because our society teaches us to grow higher, taller, instead of deeper…at the expense of other people…

And we have forgotten, God values most, us growing deeper, wider in soul and character…instead of taller and more visible for others to see…

After all, doesn’t God care more about hearts of integrity, than what we display on social media? 

The Pando tree seems to have cycles of existence on the surface…

And yet, the core root system of the Pando is deep, wide, and it does not change over the seasons.

Could we be like that too?

In a world where fame is fleeting, and those who are the head, can be the tail in a matter of seconds….

In a world of dying wood, life systems built on money, fame, power, personal purposes failing….

Could we be brave enough to shed our old selves, and want new beginnings with a deeper, more sustaining root system, living underneath the surface, having a lasting legacy that exists for generations?

The hand-raised girl with the great hair next to me at CPR has a remarkable story of redemption.

The next night after first-aid, I connect with her again, realizing she mentors young people, is a business owner focused on simplicity, and is like Ghandi….

She is passionate about being the change she wants to see in the world.

And I realize, in a world of two dimensional screens, and controlled communication…

We can forget, we are souls first and foremost, created for so much more than what people see on the outside. 

Today, will you consider the root of this life you are living? Is it good? Is it sustaining? Is it rooted on something pure and perfect, loving and eternal?

Like the Pando tree, trunks die, but we can still live solid knowing, we are wrapped tight around a God who won’t fail us.

People like my CPR friend, who was stuck in the system, aren’t just statistics, far off, distant…but real people, who deserve chances, opportunities, and have purposes waiting to blossom and unfold.

Let’s live a legacy running deeper, a message telling the world….I am rooted in Him.

And regardless of the world’s demands for towering growth on the surface…

Let’s make sure our roots run deeper….

And our life holds more….than what we show others, on the outside.

“Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.” ~ Eph. 3:17

“Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.” ~ Col 2:7