"Tree Girl"

This wonderful story is about appreciating the eternal moment here and now and knowing that we need nothing in order to Be. The story was written by my beautiful brother Michael. Thanks buddy!


Gabriella: **Asleep on park bench**

NC:**Walks past bench, but slows down and walks back to the bench**

NC: Wake up." *Nudges Gabriella* "C'mon wake up.

Gabriella: *Wakes up* Why hello. Oh sorry do you want to sit? Or do you need something? *Sits up and moves over*

NC: No, I'm just wondering why your here.

Gabriella: What do you mean?

NC: I mean why don't you go out and try to be successful in life and get a job?

Gabriella: I don't need wealth and royalty to be successful and happy.
In fact, all I need is right here where I am right now. Everything is just how I want it to be, just perfect.

NC: It doesn't seem like everything is perfect for you. You are homeless and probably don't have much of anything.

Gabriella: I know I don't seem to have much, I don't have the fancy clothes, the nice warm house, the delicious dinners, or the option to go to school, but what I do have I am very grateful for. I'm grateful for the gift of life and everything around me. This park, those trees, even this bench, it is all home to me. I focus on what I have instead of what I lack.

NC: Still, how can this grubby park be home to you? I can't imagine living this way. I dress a certain way and look how I want because that is who I am. I just dyed and cut my hair like this because I believe it suits who
I' am as a person. The piercing also helped me express who I' am, don't you agree?

Gabriella: Who you are doesn't come from how we look or the material things we own, in fact it comes from inside. Who you are is actually built from your beliefs such as; what turning points you may have encountered in the past, and the people that have come impacted you in a certain way. It has nothing to do with your physical appearance. You do not seem to be comfortable with your 'self' right now and so you seem to only want to operate when hidden behind the 'mask' that you wear that covers your true identity.

NC: I AM too comfortable with my self! At least I have a clean pair of clothing, in this system you need to look and act a certain way to not stand out and I believe that I fit in just perfect.

Gabriella: No, that is not the point. You do not need to 'fit' in, because every single individual is unique in our own ways. The only person you can be is your self.

NC: Standing out of the group will not do me any good in pursuing the dreams I wish to follow. My appearance is important because it is me, my self, who I' am and who I will be in the future. Can you see who you are in the future?

Gabriella: As for myself, I do not live in the future nor the past, because the only time you can live is now. If I were to constantly dwell on the past, I would never be sane. So I tend to live in the moment and be accepting of what I have gone through in my past. Accepting things that come into your life is a very helpful thing to know how to do, because I accepted how it is, not how I expect it to be.

NC: Yeah right, how was your past horrible enough to drive you insane?

Gabriella: War, massacre, death, and everything terrible came into my life when I turned fifteen. In result of the war in Guatemala, my whole villages along with many other Catons were completely destroyed leaving everyone dead. I found my own family killed in front of my burning house. I also had to witness this happen, watching the women get raped, and even little kids being killed. I fled and some how kept alive, finally arriving at a refugee camp across the Mexican boarder where I could be kept safe. From then on I was grateful for anything that came into my life and this helped me get away from the pain and depression of past. I believe an attitude of gratitude may have saved me from being miserable.

NC: Uh wow. I would never have expected that from you. I do not understand how you are still such happy individual. Maybe you are partially right about appearance not being everything that defines an individual, but I still believe that shaving lines in my head and having it colored made me more unique and more myself. I know that I would be miserable if I were in your position. How do you keep a positive outlook on life?

Gabriella: In this moment, there is nothing wrong so I have nothing to be down about. Also in my culture in Guatemala, it was tradition to be taught some form of self-dependency and also taking responsibility at younger ages.
Also any of the negative things that brought pain to me were great lessons that taught me many things so I would learn from it and move on with my life. I never feel lonely out here either, because ever since I was a little kid I have felt connected to the environment around me. I loved climbing trees and being in the nature which always gave me a sense comfort.

NC: That is quite amazing, so in this society you really do not need a lot to survive as your self. I believed that I needed to change how I looked to be a different person when it is what is inside I would have to change. You know what? I think your right; this look on me just doesn't define whom I really am inside. I'll work on it and just be who I 'am. Thank you very much for teaching that to me. Now I better run or else I'll be late for school. See you around.

Gabriella: Remember to just be your self because that is the only person you can truly be. I'll see you around.