In a country, in the middle east, a grand structure stood.
Filled within the structure were ice and snow, elements not native to the climate of the land the structure was built on.
The structure with ice was used to simulate the northern climate of cold temperate where unique trees and animals live.
So the architects of the structure built the machines to give birth to such biome.
The structure was magnificent. Standing tall and majestic, you could ski down the building and feel like it was a real mountain.
However, there was one problem.
The trees could not grow…
Every time any force was applied to the trees in their adolescent form, they would bend and topple over.
Roots, trunk, branch, and all flat on the earth.
The great architects studied why such a phenomenon was happening.
The soil was perfect and the temperature was just right.
Why then with all the perfect living conditions were the trees falling and dying?
The architects contemplated. They turned to nature for the answer.
What they discovered was laughably obvious yet profound in teaching a lesson about life.
Here was their lesson.
The tree grows upwards to the sky, branches, and leaves radiating to touch the sun.
Yet the roots sink deep to bring stability and foundation.
But strong roots don’t grow on their own.
What was missing inside the structure was wind.
Wind in nature made the trees strong. The battering and blustering of wind on the trees conditioned the roots to sink deeper.
The tree developed its strength and resilience to combat the invisible force.
Without such adversity, the trees did not develop the toughness to plant deep and become strong.
Such is life. The forward headwinds we face in the form of stress are the very forces that hone our abilities.
The ability to develop resilience and grow in discomfort is, therefore, a gift. A necessary ritual to overcome so that one day, you stand tall with your feet planted deep in wisdom.
The architects built a wind-blowing machine that would simulate the wind in her natural fury.
Within one growth cycle, the trees began to grow taller and stronger.
Though they bent in pain to the wind, their trunks became thick and resilient.
Like the trees when we develop ourselves head-on with the wind, we root deeper so that we can grow taller.
