A Giant, Ancient Old Tree

Cathy Holt
1 min readApr 21, 2024

in memory of my father, Robert Holt, 1917–2024

When a giant, ancient old tree
Grounded and rooted deep into Mother Earth
Finally falls…
Having offered habitat to birds, insects,
Little mammals;
Leaves and branches providing food for creatures and soil,
Oxygen and shade for us…
Roots intertwined, connected with others invisibly,
Mycelia-mediated giving and receiving.
Having witnessed myriad generations come and go,
A beautiful part of the balance of nature,
The natural givingness in the expression of a tree…
Nurturing ever more life forms after it falls;
A nurse log.

Bob Holt, 2022 (age 104)

Bob Holt was well-rooted in Truro, in nature and life.
Having sheltered and raised 4 little mammals,
Tenderly caring for us all,
Providing generously.
A gardener, forager, environmentalist,
Tending ecosystems;
Peace activist, teacher,
Psychology prof, giving
His all to his students.
His leaves of wisdom nurturing many.

Final years, becoming pure loving.
From the old body husk, medical students will learn.

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Cathy Holt

Cathy has been living in Colombia for 2 years. She’s passionate about regenerating landscapes with water retention, agro-forestry, and biogas digestors.