Society of Trees - rooted in the past growing into the future

　
The place where I walk Belle, my border-collie dog, is a large green with many varied trees some of which already have leaves turning brown in preparation for the coming autumn. As I strolled under the great canopies of the larger oaks and horse-chestnuts it got me to thinking about the parallels between trees and our own human societies.
When you look at the huge spread of leaves and enormous span of branches of a mature oak we are reminded that what we see above ground is actually mirrored below the surface. If you stand under the tip of the outermost branch and leaf you are also standing over the farthest extent of the roots far below. The grandeur of the great oak with its mighty trunk and hundreds of branches and thousands of leaves can be likened if you will to the complexities of our society.

The government in this analogy can be seen as the trunk through which all necessary nutrition should easily flow, via branch and twig, to each single leaf. Each tiny leaf, though just a minor part of the greater whole, receives its just share. No individual leaf on the tree lives on subsistence or handouts. The distribution of sustenance across the whole tree structure is fair and equitable. The deep roots, the trunk and the myriad branches all do their work to bring life to other parts. There is order and life according to the laws of nature and the tree is strong and beautiful to behold. I often just stand in silent awe of these giants, admiring their symmetry and wonderful form.
Imagine if trees lived and behaved like our societies. We would surely see some awful sights in our woodlands. Trees blighted by social disease, trunks twisted and malformed, branches and stems broken and cut off, stunted and not able to sustain the life of the leaves and the fruit. We often have, in the wake of disaster, or social unrest, war and famine, the chance to rebuild and restore our homes, towns and societies. In these transitional times perhaps we should abandon sophisticated social theories and constructs and look again to nature to see how things really work and work well, then imitate nature and do the same to safeguard our precious future.