A Metaphor for Mess

Birch trees say welcome to my beautiful mess. And that pretty much sums up life...and writing.

An early iteration of this website had a banner of birch trees on the main page as I struggled to figure out what the website of a newly published author of a single book should look like. It was a tribute to my mom, who I credit with inspring me to start writing. I’ve always loved playing with words, but I started writing with a greater sense of purpose a few years after my mom died. The earliest pieces were ways to keep her memory alive. But it also felt like a way to embrace her more fully in me. She was an avid reader and scrabble player who simply loved words (and good grammar). She had her pen name picked out but unfortunately never actually wrote her novel. Her wry humor and quick mind would have drawn us all in I know.

She also loved her cottage on the lake. At 5:00 on summer evenings, the sun hit the copse of birch trees on the far side of the lake, lighting them up in the most magical way. She always said it was her favorite time of day. So birch trees make me think of her.

When we were landscaping our new home in South Bend, I wanted to put a birch tree in the front yard. Our landscaper talked me out of it saying “birch bark is really messy.” He wasn’t wrong, of course, but I should have done it anyway. Because, at this point in my life, I understand that you just have to embrace the mess and find the beauty that is still right there in front of you. We miss so much magic when we focus on the mess. I wish I could say it hasn’t taken me decades to figure out that simple truth. I think my mom knew it all along.

At her cottage, which we just recently sold, my brother Rich loved nothing better than a roaring fire pit. He’s taught his boys and all their cousins that birch bark is an essential piece of the fun. A round tube of birch bark is called “nitro” because when you set it on the fire it erupts into the most glorious flames any 8 year old has ever seen.

Writing is like that too. If you just collect all the messy little pieces you’ve written and discarded and set them on fire one more time, something amazing can appear right before your eyes.