Trees represent the promise of doing for others

Our senses can lead to so many memories from our past.

A smell can remind you of your mom making brownies in the kitchen. The site of a lawnmower in your garage recalls the image of your dad spending hours cutting the grass. Or maybe it is remembering the touch of the soft fur from your first kitten as a child.

For me, a particular sound reminds me of my childhood, with countless weekends spent camping next to the Platte River between Omaha and Lincoln. The rustle of towering cottonwood trees immediately takes me back to summer afternoons, spent sitting under the flapping leaves, alternating between staring at the sky and sketching the landscape around me.

To this day, I am enamored with trees and cottonwoods in particular. I have a cottonwood tree in my yard which is slowly losing one large branch after another, so large that family members and visitors are instructed not to park under it when the wind gusts. But the tree retains enough branches to provide that comforting sound of rustling leaves throughout the summer.

As I stand next to the towering cottonwood in my yard, I often think about its history. All the people who have lived in my hundred-year-old house and enjoyed the tree’s canopy of shade. The birds, owls and squirrels who have used it as their home. The hundreds of times the tree has dropped its leaves in the fall and bloomed again in the spring.

Whether that tree was planted intentionally or sprouted up accidentally, it represents longevity and I only hope it is still standing after I’m gone.

“Plant a tree knowing you may never sit beneath its shade.”

On Monday, more than 80 people of all ages ventured out for the annual First Day Hike at Red Willow State Recreation Area. The event provides the opportunity to kick off the new year on a healthy note, enjoying the brisk fresh air of a January afternoon and taking in the beauty of the lake and the surrounding countryside.

A visit to the state park north of McCook also provides a great example of investing in the future.

The creation of the dam system in Southwest Nebraska has served the area for generations, providing flood control, outdoor recreation opportunities and irrigation options to name just a few benefits.

And standing at a campsite earlier this week for the New Year’s Day walk, I noticed all the trees which may not be in their full glory, but convey the promise of shade this summer.

Not too many years ago, the camping area was - to put it bluntly - fairly barren. Yes, it was usable but not very welcoming. Fast forward to today with trees towering over many of the camping spots and new trees added regularly, the area beckons for families to play games, retirees to sit and read and friends to gather and just enjoy the outdoors.

While the trees may not have been rustling with leaves on a cold winter day earlier this week, those same trees will provide countless hours of enjoyment this summer and for decades to come.

“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago; the second best time is today.”

It is not by accident that the McCook Community Foundation Fund has a tree as its logo, representing longevity and planning today for tomorrow.

Trees are a promise of doing something for others, with the knowledge that your satisfaction will come from their enjoyment rather than your own. Trees also represent endurance and standing tall even in the face of adversity such as a storm or opposition.

As we start the new year, take this opportunity to look forward on what you can do to make your community better. Figure out where you can get involved and make something happen. Roll up your sleeves to do the hard work today so that others will reap the benefits years from now.

Because what we are doing today matters. The decisions we make today will have a ripple effect for generations. And the “trees” we plant today will provide “shade” for years to come.

“A man doesn’t plant a tree for himself. He plants it for posterity.”