I'm writing in praise of trees, having met some fabulous specimens in the Scottish highlands and islands recently. Their wonderful steady strength and slow rhythm gives us the perfect antidote to today's fast-paced lifestyle with its emphasis on action and achievement. It's noticeable that the thirteen trees in the Bach Flower system help us with states where we need to slow down, regroup and get a new perspective such as Sweet Chestnut for the dark night of the soul, Elm for overwhelm, Oak for strength, Olive for exhaustion and White Chestnut for an overbusy mind.

In the wider essence world on a financial theme we have Ash which helps us when we're facing a loss of income, Cedar which cleanses our mind of negative thoughts about money and Money Tree which helps us sort out our financial affairs. On a karmic level Joshua Tree frees us from generational karma, Mulberry Tree releases past life feuds and trauma, Yew gives us wisdom and perspective and Bo Tree helps us expand our consciousness. On an emotional level She Oak helps fertility and the menopause and fruit trees such as Peach helps with grief and rejection - then there's Nectarine which gives us the support of a strong, gentle father.

There is a reason why children build tree houses and why many of us feel nourished by a walk in woodland. I had a client once who would always go and sit in her special tree as a child when things were tough. When we looked at that particular tree essence it gives the feeling of being safe, peaceful and protected and creates a shield for those of us who are very sensitive. An intuitively perfect choice!

It isn't surprising that trees offer much of the love, support and wisdom we would ideally get from our parents. When helping clients I can see the devastation of a childhood in which we either lost a parent or our father or mother (or both), through no fault of their own, were emotionally and sometimes physically unavailable to us. As I go back through family lines many fathers were absent in wars or because their work took them away. Sometimes it's the other way round and the child was sent away to boarding school. A lack of a strong, present father is passed down to sons who then have no model how to be the kind of involved husband and father they want to be. Daughters are then brought up by mothers required to be self-sufficient. This creates a model where it's hard for a daughter to accept help and support from her partner when she's older, feeling she has to 'do it all herself'.

No wonder we have such trouble in relationship, when many of us either don't know how to give or how to receive love and support!

So much of relationship is about educating ourselves in the skills of communication and emotional intelligence which haven't always been available to previous generations. It's sometimes a tough journey but the biggest, scariest dragons are always sitting on the largest pot of gold. And the rewards will be reaped by the next generation as well.

Looking after our Heritage

We've cut down 50% of our woodland pharmacies since the 1930's making the UK the least wooded country in Europe. So, although the Amazon Rainforests are high profile, let's also remember to protect and nurture our own forests, in the same way they protect and nurture us.

If these themes are of interest, you may consider Financial Flow, which contains Money Tree, or Free Your True Self, which contains Joshua Tree or Karmic Forgiveness, which contains Mulberry Tree, or The Feet Chakras, which contains Bo Tree.