Officials in Melbourne, Australia had a great idea for taking care of the city’s many trees: they assigned an email address to each tree so citizens could report problems like dangerous branches. But instead, the people of Melbourne wrote thousands of love letters to their favorite trees.
Here’s an excerpt from one of my favorites:Dear Algerian oak,And some people even received delightful replies:
Thank you for giving us oxygen. Thank you for being so pretty. I don’t know where I’d be without you to extract my carbon dioxide. (I would probably be in heaven.) Stay strong, stand tall amongst the crowd. You are the gift that keeps on giving.
Dear Green Leaf Elm,
I hope you like living at St. Mary’s. Most of the time I like it too. I have exams coming up and I should be busy studying. You do not have exams because you are a tree...we don’t have a lot in common, you being a tree and such. But I’m glad we’re in this together.
Cheers,
F
Hello F,
I do like living here. I hope you do well in your exams. Research has shown that nature can influence the way people learn in a positive way, so I hope I inspire your learning. Best wishes,
Green Leaf Elm
What would you say if you could write to your favorite trees? Maybe it’s time to start composing — “tree mail” could be coming to your city soon!
Your “Love a Tree” Gift Guru,
Linda
