In my sophomore year in high school, we read a Spanish play titled ‘Los árboles mueren de pie’ (translated, ‘The trees die standing’) written by Alejandro Casona. In this play, an elaborate lie leaves an old grandmother living a fantasy, one that she accepts since it made her happy. In the play, the author attributed the analogy of how she is still standing, albeit dead inside due to the lie (as trees do).
 
A dead tree can stand the test of time and be present at any moment, but it is just taking up space with no strength. If and when the storm hits, it will definitely loose it all and fall to its demise. Many a times I have felt the feeling of just standing without being, and this is something that is often too common in graduate school.
 
In my previous article, I explained the importance of having strong roots that serve as a base to betake yourself to the end goal. A second reason to have strong roots pertains the healthiness of the tree itself. The roots are underground and the trunk is what mostly takes the majority of the hits during a storm; a sturdy trunk is one that will endure any situation.
 
To have a solid trunk: Be true to yourself, feed out of your failures and successes – allow the environment (work, nature, etc.) to teach you and make you understand what is needed to become better. Set your roots in healthy grounds and close to water. With this, there’s not a thing that will storm you away. But now, what about the leaves… ¡Salud!

Luis R. De Jesús Báez | Chemistry

Luis R. De Jesús Báez is a fifth year Ph.D. candidate in the department of chemistry. He likes to write about the small things; those that are important but sometimes we forget due to our busy life. Let’s converse!