Filling My Soul With Good Cheer

In good times, trees have brought me joy, and in troubled times, trees have always brought me solace. So on this beautiful Sunday in September, when the feeling of impending doom and gloom was just too much to bear anymore, I decided to go to the trees. Not the usual trees I always visit, the oaks and hickories, cedars, and dogwoods, and other familiar species that surround me. No, I wanted to see the trees I had heard about, but had never gone to see. These trees that, by some quirk of Nature, took root here in the long ago past, forming a most unusual natural area for the Ozarks. But the Ozarks are full of surprises; surprises that I suddenly felt the urge to find out more about.

Emerson said that, "The sun will shine after every storm; there is a solution for every problem; and the soul's highest duty is to be of good cheer." I was in need of some good cheer, and sought it among the trees at Cupola Pond.

Cupola Pond Natural Area covers a 160-acre portion of the Mark Twain National Forest in my area. Cupola Pond is an ancient sinkhole, thought to be at least 20,000 years old. Sinkholes are formed by rainwater, filtering down through the limestone and dolomite rock, forming large caverns and caves. After a while, when too much rock dissolves, the ceiling of the cave collapses and a sinkhole appears. But there are several unusual things about this particular sinkhole. For one thing, unlike most sinkholes, Cupola Pond holds water. For another, the trees that grow in and around it are water tupelo trees, trees that are not common to the dry, karst topography; trees that usually grow in the swamps of the Mississippi delta.

Yes, I was in desperate need of some good cheer, so I drove the 25 miles, to see tall, graceful old water tupelo trees, with their broad buttresses rising from the water, and moist soil, some said to be nearly a 1000 years old, and my soul was filled with awe. There they were, looking at God all day, with their leafy arms in prayer, and as I gazed up, into the tall, leafy branches, I joined them in prayer, and suddenly felt at peace.

I saw something enduring in the beautiful tupelo trees; this Sunday in September, for their beauty and usefulness will go on, even after generations of men pass, and they will be here for others to love and remember, and for birds to build their nests in, and that gave me much solace. And I hope you, too, will find some solace and good cheer, in the beauty of Nature, in the smile of a child, or in the eyes of your faithful, furry companion. And we will endure as well!

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