The Olive Tree

To me this magnificent tree, with its low, knotty trunk 
and glossy, green and silvery white leaves
 means many things!
 It means warmth and happiness,
  it means having  roots, having  wisdom.
It means
 having found the knowledge for life.  
It means having reached the end of a long and 
troublesome journey. 
To me it means having found 
peace and harmony within ones self, 
within ones soul!

It  is truly my favourite tree!

me and the olive tree!

The ancient olive tree has been linked from time
immemorial to the history of mankind.
The tree is mentioned for the first time
 in the Book of Genesis, when the Dove returns
to Noah's ark with an olive branch in its beak,
 to proof the end of the flood.
A clear sign of Peace between God and mankind!

Emanuel Swedenborg, Swedish 18th century scientist 
and mystic, said, that everything natural
 corresponds to spiritual realities.
 On the olive tree he said:
 " The olive  tree represents, the perception of
 celestial good and truth."

The olive tree plays an important role in mythology
and legends. It is a symbol for peace and victory.
It was Athena's gift to the city of Athens,
which made the Athenians choose her as
 their Patron Goddess and gave the city her name.

In the Provence ,in France, it is called 
L'arbre roi {regal tree}.
It is also called the  Sacred tree.
Its Holy oils are still used for the ordination of priests
 and during some baptism ceremonies.

The fruit of the olive tree is a healthy
source of nourishment.
The  Spanish equivalent of  the saying
''an apple a day keeps the doctor away'' is:
''Aceite de oliva, todo mal quita''
[olive oil makes  all pain go]

My favourite olive appetizer is "pickled olives my way".
 Fill a glass jar with green olives without their stones, 
add some cloves of garlic and lemon slices, 
put any kind of fresh  herb in that you fancy,
pour virgin olive oil in, make sure you cover
 all the olives and lay some lemon slices on top
 and again cover with olive oil.
 Put a lid on and leave standing for a while.
Delicious on a warm summer afternoon,
 with a  glass of chilled, good, dry white wine.

Olives have been harvested for thousands of years!
The first tools for making olive oil have been found
on the Greek island of Crete.

Olive trees in Europe are found in Spain, France,
Italy and Greece. The average age of an olive tree
in Southern Italy is 300 to 600 years!

The olive  tree has inspired many painters.
Vincent van Gogh  was inspired many times
by the beautiful olive groves in the South of France.
''The Olive Orchard'' [ 1889] is my favourite!

And what about this lovely'' Olive Trees Landscape''
 [1925] by  French painter Pierre Bonnard.

And another one, ''Olive Trees'' [1918] by Dali

 This scene of  miles and miles of
 rolling lavender fields and that 
 one beautiful olive tree,
is my idea of  sheer bliss. [Provence, France]

This Dove of Peace flies from site to site,
 regardless of any belief.

Keep a candle burning for all of us here and Beyond.

More on Emanuel Swedenborg can be found at Egogahan

Background and graphics were made for me by my dear friend Penelope,
 who is lucky enough to have olive trees growing in her garden in Greece.
She  named one of her 200 years old olive trees, the one at the top of the page,
 ''Harriet's Tree'' .

© Harriet

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