Ogham Tuesday: Pine/Ailm

For the purposes of intersecting ogham with botany, Pine is significant primarily due to its height. There are a bunch of Pine varieties — not all of them very tall — but we aren't talking about them today. 

Mature pines can reach 120 feet or taller. These are the trees that stretch above the canopy, offering a view of the surrounding landscape. I've even seen cell phone/aerial towers disguised as pine trees because they need to be that elevated to pass a signal along, which isn't a bad metaphor either. 

Though a pine forest can often look old-growth, since their shade and soil acidity stunt the growth of competition, many of its trees are likely only to be about 50 years old. Pines grow quickly and tend not to survive until old age. (If the picture in your head is a redwood forest, feel free to consider those beauties a notable exception.)

That said, a healthy pine tree is rarely killed by fire. Once the tree measures about eight feet in height and two inches in diameter at ground level, its bark is thick enough to protect it. I haven't quite hooked an ogham-based divination meaning of my own to that, but it's not insignificant.  

I read recently a reminder that direction is more important than speed. When Pine comes up in a reading, it's a sign to seek the big picture or that "bird's eye view" of your path. You need that elevation to check that you're moving in the right direction and to and see your goal in the distance. 

Keywords include: perspective, distance, altitude, patience, opportunity, recalibrate, journey, vision, clarity, alignment, navigate, pathfinder, destination, map, visualize, plan, refinement, signaling

Guidance might include:

• Take a break from gazing forward and turn around to appreciate the distance you've already come. 

• Observe where others' paths intersect with yours and respect where they need to diverge.

• Cultivate an awareness of your ability to receive and/or transmit information from this vantage point.

Questions or cautions might include:

• Are your actions today keeping you on the path toward your goals?

• What perspective might be obscured right now?

• Can you see enough of the path ahead to make meaningful, confident choices?

What connections do you see? 

Blessings,

Nicole

~ Nicole (Nikki, sometimes Saffron Hare) is founder and general manager at Nine Fires Press. Her Druidic practice has included solitary, small-group, and congregational worship, with a focus on liturgy and seership. She is working toward Master Gardener certification, rehabbing an underground home in the Midwestern US, and loves to fall in love with bad ideas.

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