The Roots and Growth of Decisions

They’re cutting down a tree on the corner of my block. A big tree. There are 3 big trucks and 6 guys with chainsaws. The tree is outnumbered, but it still seems like it’s winning.

This one’s major offense is that its roots have completely upended the sidewalk. It’s dangerous. I know because I’ve tripped on it more than once.

Cutting this tree down has done nothing to fix the sidewalk. And putting a sidewalk next to this kind of tree in the first place is a short-sighted idea – but whoever made that decision is at least retired and maybe dead.

So if the decisions people make have consequences, and if they’re hard to undo, and if there’s even a remote possibility that 6 men with chainsaws will have to undo it – maybe it makes sense to think more about the roots and growth of our decisions in the first place.