A REFLECTION ON LIFE AND “ANSWER: LOVE MYSELF”

by Luna

The world is full of circles; limitless, infinite and whole.  The abundance of circles in nature is astounding. From celestial bodies, planets, and stars, to raindrops, flowers, and tree rings. 

Trees can live up to thousands of years, withstanding drought and fires. Interestingly when they are cut down they reveal a detailed biography of a tree’s life. Each etching marks another year, the innermost ring, being the smallest. As the tree ages the rings grow, the size and depth of each ring grows too. Tree rings can show rainy and dry seasons, early and late growth spurts.

Profoundly, scientists can also find scars from forest fires within these rings.

Stripped down, to our very core we are just like trees. We experience seasons of joy, pain, suffering, hardship, and resilience, rising and falling and cascading into a crescendo. The symphony of us, buried beneath the surface; our tree rings are an amalgamation of our true selves. 

In BTS’ song Answer: Love Myself, Suga (aka Min Yoongi) raps, “The thick tree rings in your life. That is also a part of you. That is also you.” Every struggle, every battle, every triumph intertwine to create the story of us.

“Loving myself might be harder than loving someone else, let's admit it, the standards you made are more strict for yourself / The thick tree rings in your life, it's part of you, it's you. Now let's forgive ourselves. Our lives are long, trust yourself when in a maze. When winter passes, spring always comes.”

- Suga in Answer: Love Myself by BTS