Wow, Robin, this is wonderful. It occurs to me that if all school children were given this topic as a writing exercise, us humans might have much more respect and empathy for our entire world, and be more willing to witness and believe in the stories about life told by those whose realities are so different from our own. I am obviously not a plant, yet as a chronically ill, virtually housebound human, this beautifully poetic thought experiment of yours resonates deeply for me. Many of your questions reflect my actual reality, and it feels good to witness another human pondering them, wondering what it might be like to live that experience. Thank you for writing this.
I read a farming book recently (it's my nerd space of choice) that brought up how animals move around their environment to find nutrients but plants stay in one place and have to bring nutrients to them, and that felt like an opportunity to explore. I honestly hadn't thought about how this could be a reflection on disability or chronic illness, and that makes me want to dive back in and look even closer, because yes!
An interesting essay. Since trees and plants are alive, why shouldn't they have feelings?
I think they do, but maybe we're just not smart enough to perceive them. Humans have limits after all.
Beautiful.
Thanks, Jake.
I love every dang word of this. Phewww. 🌱🫶🏻
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
This was a really cool thought experiment. I ended up thinking I would be really terrible at plant life.
Wow, Robin, this is wonderful. It occurs to me that if all school children were given this topic as a writing exercise, us humans might have much more respect and empathy for our entire world, and be more willing to witness and believe in the stories about life told by those whose realities are so different from our own. I am obviously not a plant, yet as a chronically ill, virtually housebound human, this beautifully poetic thought experiment of yours resonates deeply for me. Many of your questions reflect my actual reality, and it feels good to witness another human pondering them, wondering what it might be like to live that experience. Thank you for writing this.
I read a farming book recently (it's my nerd space of choice) that brought up how animals move around their environment to find nutrients but plants stay in one place and have to bring nutrients to them, and that felt like an opportunity to explore. I honestly hadn't thought about how this could be a reflection on disability or chronic illness, and that makes me want to dive back in and look even closer, because yes!
This is a beautiful reflection. Thanks so much for sharing!
Love this lyrical thought experiment.
It was a fun write. Glad you enjoyed it.