The Mental Aspect of Tree Planting

There is a line my foreman said in one of the films from the Tree Planting Film Festival. "In tree planting, your highs are really high, and your lows are really low." You can check out the films at this link https://treeplantingfilmfestival.earth/?fbclid=IwAR0mNkOTUOJ_28fLOxuvtSmR3Bgw3Yv5WeowGr7R0RNUNdMVsUZj1yVQfvA

This statement is so true! One of my previous shifts this season was amazing! I made $500 one day which meant I got my Summit hoodie! Summit Reforestation gives out swag to planters when they hit certain milestones. $200 you get a buff, $300 you get a hat, $500 you get a sweater, $1800 in a shift you get a jacket. The remainder of the shift I made over $400 each day and hit my PB(personal best) number of trees planted in a day; 3525.

Then the shift after was one of the worst shifts in my planting history. On day one, my foreman said that my trees from a previous shift had a lot of open holes and I had to go and repo. Repo means go and fix your trees and not get paid. I was pretty upset for many reasons. Mainly, because I wasn't going to make any money. Then I felt bad that I had disappointed my foreman, and then I was also disappointed in myself for doing a bad job. I spent the rest of my day sulking around the block where I had planted, making the 1400 trees there better. The following day I did not make my average amount of money because I took care to plant my trees perfectly.

However, good experience and bad experiences I learned a lot! I learned how to better close holes in difficult land, I learned how to learn from my mistakes and move on and that there is always room to improve oneself. I learned that I can push myself hard to achieve my goals. Most importantly, I learned that bad days only last for a time and to enjoy good days to the fullest when I have them. Planting trees is physically demanding, but its also mentally demanding in many ways.

The crew I'm on makes every day a little better! COVID restrictions are lessening each day so we get to interact more and have a good time. Its isolating out here, and weird to think I will go most of the season without seeing a town or other people. Being isolated with this group of people is pretty sweet though, so is not having much of an opportunity to spend money!

Stay safe and healthy everybody! Miss you all!!