Conversations with Trees: An Intimate Ecology

by Stephanie Kaza

From a pioneering thinker in the field of religion and ecology, a collection of evocative meditations on the beauty, fragility, and resilience of trees. Included are twenty-seven original lithographs of the trees profiled in each chapter.

First published in 1993, Stephanie Kaza's heartfelt book helped thousands of readers kindle a sense of spiritual connection through communing with our ancient relatives - trees. Shambhala Publications is proud to reissue this book, with a beautiful new cover and a new Introduction by the author. More pertinent now than ever, Kaza's intimate exploration of the lives and relationships of individual trees exemplifies the conjunction of inquiry and emotion, of science and spirituality. In an era of species extinction and worsening climate change, this book is a warm and earnest invitation to personal and ecological sanity.

Genres: Nonfiction, Nature, Science, Ecology, Environment, Philosophy

288 pages, Paperback

Published April 23, 2019

Reviews

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ish. During this shutdown time, I especially appreciated these vicarious walks. Kaza beautifully evokes the blazing yellow of gyngko leaves and the deep time of bristlecones. I will read those chapters again. Her premise, meeting trees on their own terms, respecting their Otherness, was attractive. It's goal that is hard, maybe impossible, to realize. It's not bad that it's Kaza rather than trees that the reader is in conversation with. Still something about her style (too many exclamation marks, for one thing) was off-putting for me.

[Lewis Summers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good. A really interesting perspective on our relationship with trees, and others. Deb beat me to reading it but I did finish just in time to give her copy back in Adelaide.

[Chris Scott · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love trees as much as the next guy but damn

[Bonnye Reed · Rating 5 out of 5]

Originally published in 1993 by The Attentive Heart, these essays by Stephanie Kaza, illustrated by wonderful line drawings by Davis Te Selle are just as relevant today as they were 25 years ago. And their message is just as strongly needed - if we take care of the needs of the trees, the people will live on.

Kaza moves me to tears in places. She brings into focus the wonder of these living, breathing plants that outlive us in some cases by centuries, requiring only water, nutrients, and carbon dioxide and a place in the sun. And we are killing them off, wholesale. To make toilet paper. And plant palm oil fields. What are we thinking?

I received a free electronic copy of this collection of essays from Netgalley, Stephanie Kaza, Shambhala Publications, Inc. Thank you for sharing your hard work with me. I have read and reviewed this publication of my own volition. This review reflects my honest opinion.

Pub date April 23, 2019

Reviewed April 24, 2019 at Goodreads, Netgalley, Amazon. Smile, BookBub, and Kobo.

[Evan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 26 of 2022.

[Dan Carey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kaza's prose and sentiments will strike many as over-the-top. There were times in this book when that included me. But my growing sense of kinship with trees no doubt strikes many as also over-the-top, so I just have to acknowledge that the line's position is personal for every reader. That said, there are some wonderful sections in these meditations. It was pretty much what I wanted when I bought the book.

[Kelsey Bollman · Rating 5 out of 5]

May be obvious, but this book is for tree lovers. If you’re “kinda into trees” you kinda won’t be into this. I found this book wonderful, informational, and spiritual.

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unfortunately, I read this book after finishing some essays by Voltaire and it was like drinking a glass of orange juice after brushing your teeth. The difference in epistemological rigor and dispensed wisdom is stark, with Voltaire, a canonical Enlightenment figure, telling us to "Cherish those who seek the truth but beware of those who find it" and Ms. Kaza, a former church minister and practicing Zen Buddhist, giving such pulpit worthy reflections such as "Can a chainsaw stay conscious at that speed? I don't think so, and so it breeds unconsciousness into its users".

After about page 5, I switched from trying to learn about ecology (The line "I find myself moved more by the aesthetics than by the science of these beautiful trees" is understandable and relatable but not exactly promising to someone reading words in a book) to trying to understand the views and values of a practitioner of this New Age system (Buddhism + Nature worship) that seems to have taken the place of Christian spirituality in the minds/'hearts' of Progressive women.

My ultimate conclusion was a reaffirmation that I am truly dealing with an alien intelligence (admittedly, I am the actual alien in this situation) that I will never be able to fully sympathize with but that is all the most interesting to think about as a result. For instance, take the following quote:

"The field guides don't say much about this type of identification With other, meeting the tree as fully itself." On the surface, this sentence is complete gibberish to me. Trying to understand the sentiment, I conclude that what is being sought is a connection, rather than a set of facts that describe the tree. What do women* mean by a connection? This seems important, as 'connection' is by far the most common term that I hear when women talk about what they most value in the world. Does it mean something that elicits an emotional response? How does a connection differ from a reaction? It seems like there is a notion of direction, with a connection being bilateral and a reaction being unilateral. Is that related to empathy? Does the sensation of connection occur when a feeling originates within themselves but then also elicits some sort of reaction in the other party that triggers a feeling like reciprocity, or at least an acknowledgement or reaction to the feeling? Am I putting too much into this bilateral idea? Maybe a connection is just an emotional response with the characteristic that it expands the sense of self and/or the scope of personal concern. It bypasses the ego, in a narrow interpretation of that term. So feeling a connection might really just mean something that causes a shift of focus away from oneself. I know from personal experience that this is an absolutely magical feeling when I am anxious or stressed, such concerns fall away and you are left unburdened. Note that this also seems to be the goal of Zen meditation and that there is a lot of overlap between the New Age crowd and the Zen meditation crowd.

Alright, well that was a fun little stream of consciousness. I will conclude by saying that, while I learned nothing about ecology from this book, it nevertheless provoked some interesting thoughts within me about value systems and how those shape perception.

* I do not think that there is a single set of values/dispositions/mindsets that is shared by all women. However, I do not want to qualify every statement with 'some select group of '

[Ellen Sue]

Conversations with Trees: An Intimate Ecology by Stephanie Kaza

Stephanie Kaza has written a most unusual, captivating book about her personal, intimate relationship with trees. Formerly called The Attentive Heart: Conversations with Trees, the author has put her heart and soul into her conversations with these wonderful living gifts from Mother Nature.

Her conversational stories take us to many places she has lived, worked, or visited, and with these conversations we revisit these spots with her. She describes the trees and what they mean to her, much as you. Would describe a good friend who you haven’t visited in a long time, but still enjoy his or her company.

Since this is such as unusual book, I have taken the liberty of quoting from different parts of the book so you can grasp the “flavor” of her conversations and how trees become living, breathing entities to Kaza. Here are a few of Kaza’s forest gems.

"I spent time in silence, close to trees, doing my best to be simply present with the tree as Other, aware of my thoughts, moods, projections….I did not go with an agenda or story in mind…."p. 5


"By sharing this process (of conversing with trees – es) with others I hope to encourage and support people in engaging in their own conversations with trees." p. 10

"Sometimes you have to look at a tree from the ground. On your back. Nothing between you and the sky except the arms of the tree. Just lying on the earth, looking up." p. 19


"Outside, the winter creek dances through the rocks, refreshing the small hollow below Skyline Ridge." p. 23

"Today I heard the calling of the redwoods again." p. 39

These few quotes tell us how close the author feels to trees as well as all of nature. And accompanying her words are wonderful illustrations by Davis Te Selle. In fact, the artist wrote the readers a note explaining that the illustrations are reproductions of hand-printed lithographs. He explains how illustrating this book has given him a way to integrate his somewhat anachronistic graphic tastes with his current environmental concerns. (Almost a direct quote.) And these illustrations are magnificent and complement Kaza’s feelings and concerns about trees.

I enjoyed reading this book with illustrations of several of the trees that Kaza writes about. It’s somewhat of a memoir, since her choices of trees are often linked to a memory. It’s also a book that celebrates trees and at the same time, telling of her environmental concerns.

As a Buddhist, Stephanie Kaza seems already predisposed to write this most unusual book, since many Buddhism involves nature. Here is a bit from the BBC about this link:
“For most Buddhists, the guiding principles are to live simply in order to respect all life forms as well as the balance and peace in nature. ... This means Buddhists have to make themselves aware of the damage they do to the environment so that they can then act to change it.”

As a person concerned with the environment, I found this book enlightening, tender, and inspiring. The illustrations also captured my heart, because they are rendered so beautifully.

Conversations with Trees is a wonderful personal statement by someone deeply concerned with the environment, as is the illustrator. I recommend it highly! It is published by Shambhala Publications in Boston, MA.

[Frank Watson · Rating 5 out of 5]

At first it sounded strange, almost ridiculous: CONVERSATIONS WITH TREES. Really? Then I realized I was looking at it from a western, materialistic mind. If looked at from a more Zen perspective, with the realization that all is part of all, it makes more sense.

I still wasn’t sure what to expect, but Stephanie Kaza, the author CONVERSATIONS WITH TREES: AN INTIMATE ECOLOGY, is a student of Zen and the book is a collection of her essays. Many seem to have been lifted directly from her journals. Perhaps not surprisingly, she had in some cases spoken to the trees. They did not speak back, but communicated with their presence and – perhaps – spirit.

To be honest, many of us have had such personal encounters with trees.

In my case there is the maple planted by my great-grandmother under which I have spent many afternoons reading and thinking. There is the huge oak in the woods leaning over a creek we played under as kids; used as a bridge when it toppled across the creek; and shared the experience with my dad of turning it into firewood for a winter (and then enjoying the warmth in the winter). There was a climbing tree in my grandparents’ front lawn that was the site for many adventures.

There are more. But you get the idea.

So Kaza’s essays are not just about the trees themselves, but also .friends, lovers, family. being young, getting old, passing of time, and so much more.

A thread running through it all is the idea of the trees and us sharing a world and how so much of the treasure has been lost. And, if we’re not careful, we could lose it all.

A related theme might be: Do not take any tree for granted. Maybe even “talk” to one that grabs you. Or at least listen to what they may be saying.

[Agneza Huljev · Rating 4 out of 5]

Been a while since I read it, wasn't sure how to review it so left it maybe deliberately. Let's see what stood out.

Before this I was reading a couple of books by tree scientists who had help with the writing. So with this book, a few pages in I noticed that it's well-written (this author too is a scientist, but clearly, also a writer). The descriptions of trees, places, memories, transport you to the scene the way good writing does which was refreshing. It's written as a series of vignettes each concerning an actual tree or group of trees in North America that the author has visited on her life journey. Some of the sketches set the tree in context of it's surrounding environment. In some the tree is a signpost for a particular memory which involves the author's life experiences. Some meander through meditative or philosophical thoughts.

What I like about the book is that trees are viewed from a variety of perspectives, from far away, close up, in different weathers and times of day. The author interacts with them in various ways: touches them, climbs, hides within, sleeps under. Different parts of the tree are explored. Also trees in different environments: cities, small towns, on rural properties, in national parks, in the wild. New trees and trees in old-growth forests, and different species.

I emphasise that the author is a good writer because sometimes she almost loses me. Her experiences suggest a lot of social access (access to nature and social access seem appallingly connected & ya know that's a huge peeve of mine). For example, dear friends and special groups she is part of alert her to the existence of particular areas/forests that hardly anyone knows about. Another almost
-lost-me is when she drenches the tree descriptions with her overly-exaggerated melodramatic human emotions. Leave the poor tree alone! But she has the persuasive powers to save the vignette at the end and make her point e.g. I think the heaving grief passage became a meditation of a shared common grief in the human consciousness about the loss of the natural world.

But all that picking, power-play, push-pull in the writing prevents me from being able to interpret the author as someone with a purity of purpose, or as a Buddhist community leader. This is a lady who has been successful in corporate-type environments, who has been able to teach some pleasant classes, and has had the opportunity to stick her paws into some beautiful places.

Unfortunately this intuition about the author and her values created a tension and ambiguity in my reading of the book so I couldn't quite let go and enjoy the descriptions and meditations. To be fair, there is a lot being explored here and it would be worth using the book as a reference point and revisiting it.

[Lauren Dammacco · Rating 3 out of 5]

Skimmed and read the more important chunks. While it is obvious that this book is not for everyone, and can be repetitive at times, I liked a lot of the concepts. It is always refreshing to read environmentally-focused pieces that help motivate me in my endeavors to be more sustainably conscious. This book was not necessarily focused on the sustainability piece, but it is hard to not make the connection when she refers to the trees in an almost human-like manner. I have since paused and taken in the trees local to me a bit more, imagining what their view might have been decades ago.
It also did have me looking at me (real) Christmas tree a little differently this year.

[Andjelka Jankovic · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book far more than I expected; a poetic, observational and philosophical look at trees through the eyes of a tree lover. I found myself completely lost in it at times, coming up for air when I realised how close my nose was to the page. It speaks to my soul, how trees have wisdom and character beyond human recognition and how they are our teachers. Druid, the name for a tree lover, has the same root word as ‘truth’.

[Tyler Leary · Rating 4 out of 5]

No, I didn't write this book, but my friends at work who call me "the tree whisperer" might have guessed so. As advertised, this collection of essays really is about talking with trees, being in relationship with them, learning from them, and appreciating their presense. Of course I enjoyed it, and if you're interested I think you'll find this an easy, mind-opening read.

[Cherie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The best way to describe this is love letters/love poems to trees. Would be really nice to sit out in nature and savor each poem under different trees.

[Crista Lash · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book. 5 stars.

I would suggest anyone who loved Braiding Sweetgrass give this book a go.