What Really Matters?

Philosophers and many other less sophisticated thinkers have been wondering for a long time - What Really Matters? What makes life worth living? What are the fundamental things that apply? I, too, as one of those less sophisticated thinkers, have been thinking about this for some time, and while enjoying my second spring in New York City, I think I have discovered the answer. The answer is trees. Trees are the thing that really matters. Trees are what makes life worth living. Trees are the fundamental things that apply. They prevent erosion and help to balance the ecosystem. Through photosynthesis, they provide oxygen and reduce the carbon dioxide in the air. They are major providers of food, and they are the key to any large-scale landscaping design. They often contribute an appealing fragrance to the air. They offer shade, and they are, by far, the most efficient users of solar energy in the world. The leaves of trees also have a way of reflecting the sun's rays to create a particularly brilliant and appealing effect.

In a place like New York City, trees are a must. They help to clean the air, but on an everyday basis, they make the city more beautiful, habitable, and striking. There is nothing quite like the contrast between a street lined with apartment buildings with no trees, and a street that has been carefully designed with trees all along the curb. Central Park, of course, is a magnet for many reasons, but most of all, I think, for its tremendous number of trees in so many different varieties. Trees provide relief from the urban landscape. As I have said before elsewhere in this blog, New York City would be impossible without Central Park. And Central Park would be impossible without its trees. It thus follows, at least for New Yorkers anyway, trees are the thing that really matters.