collected writings

Life In The Trees

A quick search of the World Wide Web reveled that while there are many pages devoted to hate groups, there are no web pages for hate groups that live in treehouses. Obviously, when a society gives up living on the ground, it also gives up all forms of crime and vice as well. You might say that I am glossing over the details a little when I make this claim, but I believe it to be true, and I will demonstrate this belief in the ideas to follow.

Imagine a civilization as advanced as our own, except for the fact that all of their houses are built in tall, strong trees. Of course there are certain buildings that due to their size, shape or use could not be built in trees, like football stadiums and the UN Headquarters, but they are elevated in such a way as to give the impression that they are built in trees. The houses that are actually built in trees range from small impromptu shacks, much like the treehouses that we know of, to large multistory mansions that require many trees to hold them off the ground. Still, there is no class struggle between those who have small treehouses and those who have large treehouses. Marxism does not exist, because every person, no matter what social class they belong to, all start off on the same level, namely, 65 feet off the ground supported by a giant tree.

The utter absence of class conflict reduces the crime rate drastically, while any other form of crime is basically nonexistent due to the nature of living in the trees. When a civilization lives primarily on the ground, it does not feel that it is actually living. Life becomes routine and forgotten. When someone lives in the trees however, they are constantly reminded that they are alive, because they feel life every time a tree sways in the wind, or grows, or eventually dies and falls to the ground. Every time a tree groans from the wind or from growing, the floorboards of even the most well put together house shake along with the tree, so much that it is a constant reminder that life is everywhere. In consequence, everyone loves life because they are so often reminded of it through the trees, and the murder rate is reduced to zero. The only deaths, other than old age and food poisoning, occur when a tree falls over and carries its occupants with it to the ground. Whenever this happens, it is viewed just as natural of a death as death from old age, and in consequence the people of this civilization view death as nothing more than another event in everyone's life, not the end-all of everything that needs to be feared and hated.

Life is good for people that live in the trees. They live much as children in our world do when they build their first treehouse, fort or clubhouse in an attempt to get away from the world and their parents. Due to this civilization's acceptance of death and their close proximity to nature, they enjoy life more, and in turn they are happier than other civilizations that live on the ground. While people in earth-based societies rush around to the bank, to pick up the kids from school, and to go grocery shopping, people living in the trees are more likely to sit outside on their deck (everyone has a deck), wait for the kids to swing home on a jungle vine and if they get hungry they reach into the branches to pick some fresh fruit to chew on. The people are as relaxed as possible, and yet their civilization is still just as technologically advanced as ours, and it keeps up with our advances almost verbatim. Perhaps the secret of living such a relaxed and yet modern society is to live as close to mother nature as possible: in a tree.

Most scientists believe that our life as we know it evolved from early primates who lived in the trees in order to avoid fearsome land based predators. Therefore, returning to live in the trees can help us escape from modern day predators such as taxes, societal constraints and censorship. Even the very houses in which we live in will be free from these modern predators. Instead of miles and miles of ugly town homes in the suburbs that are modeled after one of two patterns, each house is specially designed to fit perfectly in the branches of a unique tree. The houses become living things themselves, as they are built with springs and specially designed brackets to expand as the tree grows. Living in growing, ever evolving trees and expandable houses makes the human occupants become less rigid and less likely to stereotype than people that live on the ground in wooden and brick boxes that look the same as their neighbors.

This painting of one such treehouse, done by a local artist, further illustrates the point that I am trying to make in claiming that everyone should live in treehouses. The house is designed in every principle that Frank Lloyd Wright established, namely, that architecture should mesh perfectly with nature. Thus, the house is made out of brown wood with a green shingled roof, just like the tree. The house does not try and outdo what nature has designed in the tree, it simply plays along in the same style. This is the same for all houses that are built in this civilization of treehouses. There are no ugly brick buildings in this society, because mother nature never slaved all day over a kiln trying to make a brick that was structurally sound. Almost ninety five percent of the houses are made out of wood with some sort of green roof, but it is still important to remember that no two houses are the same, and the same shade of green is usually hard to find in the same neighborhood or forest. Out of this attempt to try and mesh perfectly with nature comes a new understanding for the beauty of nature and the beauty of trees. The architects do their best to incorporate this beauty into their houses, although they realize that they will never outdo or even equal mother nature. This realization is rarely found in our land based society.

Also, you will notice in the painting that just as the architects play along with nature, nature plays along with the architects. Thus, the vines and other plants that grow or hang from the trees are just as happy growing off the structures supporting the house. This represents a true symbiosis between architecture and nature that is rare outside of this particular civilization.

So what can we learn from those people who spend their whole lives living in trees? Is it possible for our civilization, right now, to live in harmony with nature, but not necessarily to live up in the trees? Is it possible for us to spend the majority of our time relaxing and eating apples and still be a technologically superior society? Is it necessary that we are a technologically advanced society if we do not get the chance to eat apples routinely? I believe that we can learn a lesson from those people who live in trees, but we do not necessarily have to live in trees to learn the lessons. Maybe it is enough just to take some time and relax alongside nature, instead of trying to suppress it constantly. Perhaps all that we have to do is live as the kid who just moved a rocking chair into his first treehouse, utterly content and happy, and at peace with the world.