I don’t hear the voices, yet.
The men are surrounded.
Deep in the city
deep in the forest,
the forest, which is deep in the city.
The sidewalk has been transformed over the past week. Once a spacious thoroughfare, all city, it has instead become a small forest. Peach blossom trees, rooted in their ornate planters, waiting to be taken home in advance of Tet.
At first glance, the trees appear to be uniform, little to distinguish them.
But it’s in the body language of these two men that I realize each planter, and more importantly, each tree, is unique.
The men scrutinize.
Pausing, chatting quietly, listening, gazing,
intent.
They listen, for the voices
of the ones who came before.
This is the future of their family on the line. Choosing the right tree to take home, the one that will ensure prosperity, growth, and happiness for the coming year.
It is a decision not taken lightly.
And so, as I watch these men, amongst these trees, I am aware of the weight of it all.
I don’t know exactly how they will make their decision, what will tip the scale, and which tree ends up on their doorstep.
I do know that they are carrying their family on their shoulders, the voices of ancestors in their ears.
To my untrained eye, these trees all look the same.
But these men, in their lack of haste and bounty of patience, provoke me to slow down,
look more closely
and listen to the voices that remain.
Get Up Eight 
I love reading this and visualizing – not sure what kind of tree I’m supposed to visualize – but it doesn’t matter. It’s about the men and the conferring with the past and the future. Thank you
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I enjoyed learning about a tradition new to me, and reading your piece sent me into some research. What a lovely tradition. Fragile blossoms represent so much , in so many traditions. We will soon have the Cherry Blossom Festival in my city, though it doesn’t have the gravitas you share with us here. I wondered how you buy a tree each year and learned they are rented, yes? It is nice how you paint us the paradox of a forest set up in the city in your opening. And how the men’s careful consideration led you to notice and consider more deeply. Even to listen for their ancestral voices.
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