As I wander through the shade of our mixed woodland in late summer, a profound sense of calm washes over me. The air is filled with the earthy aroma of moss and fallen leaves, and the gentle rustling of foliage in the breeze feels like a whisper from the ancient spirits of the land. My heart quickens with anticipation as I approach my favourite “twisted” Oak, its wide trunk and towering form commanding attention. I stop and sit a while.
The oak stands as a sentinel of time, its gnarled branches reaching out like open arms above me. Its trunk is adorned with mosses, lichens, and tiny ferns, as if nature itself has chosen to make a home upon its weathered bark. The oak’s leaves, that familiar deeply-lobed shape, flutter like a chorus of green butterflies, capturing sunlight and casting intricate shadows over my shoes.
To me, this English Oak is a living embodiment of the ancient wisdom that courses through the veins of the land. Its deep roots, anchored firmly in the earth, are a reminder of the continuity of life’s cycles — a connection to both the ancestors who walked these woods before me and the generations yet to come. As I lean back gently against the rough bark, I feel a surge of energy, as if the oak’s life force resonates with my own.
This oak is a teacher, revealing lessons of strength and resilience. Its branches, which have weathered countless storms, remind me of the power of endurance and the importance of standing firm in the face of adversity. It is home to hundreds of species, it is food for hundreds more, it is guardian of the woods and a “mother-tree” to thousands of offspring. At over 100 years old, I can only imagine what this treasured tree has endured, has witnessed, has taught. How many of mother nature’s children have sat where I sit, breathed in her life or collected and replanted her acorns?
Sadly her acorn caps are not suitable for our pendants, having too deep a bowl, which covers over half of the acorn itself. For our pendants, we choose caps from her cousin, the Northern Red Oak, whose cups are much shallower and saucer-like in appearance. Providing the perfect base to set our natural resin “acorns” inside.
