Wrinkles

It’s not an original insight to describe tree bark as the tree’s skin. And yet, looking at this European Beech, it feels like an accurate description. It’s distinct from the twists and turns that branches, for example, take. Those seem to have no analog to human structure and that creates a completely different conversation.

The patterns and textures of an elder Beech tree tell a complicated story, one that can’t be easily followed without having been a witness to its growth over the years. Yet it’s all there: the creases and folds and subtle colorations as we put our attention close in. We might read it like a visual history, even if we’ve little sense of what it means.

But the more we look, the greater the likelihood that we will discern some meaning, even without necessarily understanding. Maybe that’s good enough.