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The Weather Tree |
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One-Day-at-a-Time Tree The ancient Chinese used the image of the tree to record changing weather patterns, and Dorothy Thelwall's Weather Tree has been adapted by two friends to serve a different purpose; that of acknowledging, recording, and monitoring emotions. It may be helpful when used in conjunction with counseling or therapy. Although it is not of itself a therapy, the daily process of considering one's state of mind, and colouring in the leaves to reflect it, may prove to be beneficial, and the completed tree can serve as a beautiful visual record of changes during the year.
Click here to see a larger image of the tree in a new window The two friends who developed this idea offer the following advice: "Think about the range of moods and emotions that you have to deal with, and for each one, choose a colour personal to you. Buy enough felt-tip pens, gel pens, water-colour crayons, or whatever you feel best with, to last the year. This is important as colour-changes should be avoided.
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Be prepared to record 'blips', such as really bad moments,
perhaps with a splash of something, and really good times with maybe an
outline in a special colour. Some of your days might turn out to be made
up of many different colours, but as the year goes on you will begin to
see trends developing. If you are having therapy, we hope that this will
lead you to better times, and you will have the satisfaction of seeing
your progress in this immediate and striking form. It is very different
from keeping a diary; it is a see-at-a-glance record of the way you are
responding to your programme. Or if you simply wish to keep a record of
your emotions through times of change, this is a good way to see how
you're responding to the life-events that come to all of us."|
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