I dreamt I was a vast underground organism
sprouting mushrooms from the forest floor,
creating spores to float, propagate,
most of me a deep tangled network of tendrils
thinner than hairs, wrapping around,
penetrating tree roots for sustenance,
providing communication between
numerous trees in a grove, channeling
water, minerals, from tree to tree,
trees knowing through me which other trees
need extra water and nutrients to
survive, such as saplings in shade,
until they are tall enough to gather
their own sunlight, giving to other
trees in turn, with all taken care of.
I woke to sunlight dappled through lace curtains, human again but somehow changed,
certain we are all connected for better or worse, worse when clinging to illusions of
separation, better when celebrating and sustaining each other, not only humans
but all life on our planet crucial for each individual survival, crucial.
Are the networks of neurons in our human brains so different from mycelia of fungi committed to growth, life, balance, communication?
We are all connected.
~ Wry Welwood
September 2023
For information about the symbiosis and communication between trees and fungi, check out:
https://www.nationalforests.org/blog/underground-mycorrhizal-network
I loved this. I connected immediately, as I live in the woods. Trees grow at angles. Trees collapse, Trees rot. The sun is blocked out most of the time. But then, the roots start to talk to each other and send the nutrients where they are needed. Where rotted trees collapse, the sun peers through. Eventually, the roots start the process again. Nature abhors a vacuum.