Of Redwoods and Rivers and Sand Dunes
Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; …And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Genesis 2:8-9
Hop aboard, ladies. We’re taking a ride up the Oregon coast this week to see some amazing sights in God’s creation. First stop, a touch of grandeur in Redwood National Park. The California or coastal redwood, scientific name sequoia sempervirens, grows only in a narrow strip of land from northern California through Oregon, close to the coast yet not too close as it doesn’t like salt spray. Plentiful rainfall and summer fog of the region are just what they need—fog drip accounts for 30% of the yearly water supply. The “redwood” name comes from a bright red, fibrous bark when freshly exposed. They boast the tallest—Hyperion, at 379’—but cannot match the 102’ girth of the General Sherman, a non-related sequoiadendron giganteum in the Sierra Nevadas.*
We’ve been directed by the park ranger to a six-mile dirt road through the ancients—some, 2200 years of age. A deliberate attempt to preserve these colossals makes us privy to the impressive stature and sheltering overhang of green. Stretch out an arm from your side of the car—go ahead, both of you, each side of the car—and touch a giant.
God knew what he was doing when he made a tree, that’s for sure—all pleasing to the eye, some good for nuts and fruit, plus the benefit of shade and shelter for God’s creatures great and small, including you and me. In his 1914 poem Trees, Joyce Kilmer captures some of the magic:
A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in Summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.
In creating trees God did even better than that, providing us with the tree of life. Pity, Adam and Eve tested His command to not eat of that other tree, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. We could have been enjoying the shade of Eden to this day. Fortunately we have John’s vision on Patmos to give us hope: “How blessed are those who wash their robes (in the blood of the Lamb, Revelation 7:14—are deemed righteous)! The Tree of Life is theirs for good” (Revelation 22:14, MSG).
Nancy P
*National Park Service brochures
