Banyan Trees

Rough, brown tentacles intertwine, braided together like a school girl's hair. Looking at the perfectly tangled limbs, I wonder how they learned this trick. The banyan trees spread their roots and display their branches as far as they can, making it impossible not to notice them, not to be awestruck by their beauty. They command attention. They make it impossible not to stare. Streets wrap around their roots, and holes are cut into fences to accommodate their branches.

Occasionally I will see a young child attempt to master the spiral trunk. No one ever wins. For some reason they still try though. They are too young to realize their place in nature. Determined little kids compete to see who can get higher. They place one foot above the other, reaching for thick branches or a clump of leaves, grasping on in order to pull themselves up. The kids always have the intention of reaching the top, but they rarely do. No one can.

Both big and beautiful, their presence intimidates the city. People willingly build around the striking giants, going out of their way to preserve the trees. As adults, they are aware of their status below the winding branches and twisting trunks. They know nothing they could build could ever be as flawless as the banyan trees. They know these trees move for no one.

Picture source: http://merrick.library.miami.edu/cdm4/item_viewer.php?CISOROOT=/asm0530&CISOPTR=1702&CISOBOX=1&REC=2