Become a Tree Hugger, or Planter. Your Call.

Find a community service project. Sign up. Do it.

My kids still talk about that dark night in March of 2020, when the sirens screamed as they were shaken from their slumber and carried to the basement.  They remember the unusual urgency that night as we hudded together, waiting, praying for our neighbors and our home – hoping that the tornado would pass over our East Nashville neighborhood.

We were fortunate. Our property was unscathed, but just blocks away, houses were opened like dollhouses, trees that had witnessed centuries of Nashville’s history were gone, cars were flipped as casually as a leaf in a breeze.   

A year later, as our neighbors continue to repair and adjust their eyes to our changed landscapes, we were given the opportunity to help.  Out on a walk one day, I noticed a sign announcing a community-wide tree planting at Lockeland Park.  Lockeland Park is a tiny, but truly magical park just a couple blocks from our house, one we dubbed “the fairy park” because of the fairy villages our imaginative neighbors have staged there.  Sadly, it was reduced to a massive pile of branches and downed trees by the tornado.  

So masked up, shovels in hand, we spend a drizzly Saturday afternoon plugging new life into our beloved park.  Granted, our 9 and 7 year olds weren’t able to do a whole lot of the manual labor of dragging trees and their massive root balls and digging trenches into the heavy, sodden earth but they were there, which made them take ownership in the effort.  They watched their parents and neighbors get muddy feet and sore backs, offer shovels to neighbors and accept tools from strangers and the kids, like the rest of us, were present – putting their our time towards someone and something besides themselves. And they made a few new friends in the process.  I call that a good lesson and a good day.

So, keep your eyes out.  Check out your neighborhood facebook page or citywide volunteer opportunities and consider finding and event you and your kids can participate in.  Even if the kids are too young to do a whole lot, these are great opportunities for them to watch and absorb the feel-good vibes of doing something good and productive alongside others.