“No tree can grow to Heaven unless its roots reach down to Hell.”
Carl Jung - Aion: Researches into the Phenomenology of the Self.
In the center of Palermo, next to the old harbor, there is a tall, solemn tree. It was imported from Australia and it looks like a wise tree. It grows roots out of its branches and then lets them hanging. When these touch the ground, they become new trunks. This allows the tree to bear the weight of its enormous size. Standing next to it is awe-inspiring. It makes you feel small and somehow undefined, as if you found yourself walking in a Jurassic jungle.
Looking closely, the branches of this tree look like the legs of an elephant-like creature.
This tree, that learnt to survive in the tropical forest, is a perfect, natural example of how to find balance. It looks for the sky while reaching for the earth underneath. It remembers to put down roots to sustain itself.
In this trip we look for the roots of all of us. The hidden link to the earth beneath our feet. How do we plunge our branches into the ground in order to grow to heaven?
We are at the beginning of a 700km walk, the first part of the Cammino Adagio, an experiment of on-the-road reporting to look for the stories hidden in the landscape.
We take a deep breath, inhale some life force and take the first step.
Comments