Recovery takes courage. Although some days are very challenging, it’s important we also know that love, beauty, and hope-filled messages are all around us. How do you find these loving, beautiful, hopeful messages in the ordinary-like seeing the image of a cathedral within a rock pile? Trees speak to my heart, so are messengers of this extraordinary in my ordinary.

I had a special tree that provided a “home” where I felt love, wonder and solace. While sheltered under it, I relaxed to the meditative sounds of the nearby water, watched dragonflies dance, encountered my first roadrunner, and got up close to a beautiful heron.

At a time I felt deeply brokenhearted, I came upon a tree that had a huge hole straight through its center. As I walked up to get a closer look, the sun cast a shadow directly over the gaping hole, and it was in complete alignment with my heart, while perfectly representing what I was experiencing inside. I felt kinship with this tree.

Another time, I came across scorched trees (for all practical purposes they were dead) yet they carried small signs of life, like one tiny green bud daring to sprout. It reminded me that although parts of myself felt dead, parts were also growing with new life. I was healing, and inner transformation was occurring. The trees gave rise to hope within me.

One day I came upon a tree that emulated the sadness and lifelessness I felt. Yet, the rays of the sun streamed down in a way that looked like fingers touching the top branches of the tree caressing it upward toward the light. It was a clear message to me that I was being held, and that as dark as it felt at times, I was truly being held by a Loving Presence.

I’m just getting started on the healing messages that I’ve felt from trees, but what about you? On your recovery journey, what hope-filled healing messages of the extraordinary in the ordinary do you have to share?

Cheri Thomas

Cheri works as a Peer Support Specialist at Recovery Innovations. She writes as an expression of her heart in hopes of connecting to others’ hearts, so that no one feels alone on this journey-and instead feels valued, seen, and heard while growing in empowerment.