The Nature of the Secrets of a Celtic Mystic?

Listening to Catriona MacGregor talk about her spiritual experiences with trees on 'The Mystical Underground' podcast made me think of the French/Australian 2010 movie 'The Tree' where after the death of her father, an 8-year-old girl becomes convinced that he is whispering to her through the leaves of the gargantuan tree that towers over her house.

The Tree

The Teviotville Tree is a large Moreton Bay fig tree
 in Teviotville, Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia

Ficus benjamina, commonly known as
weeping fig, benjamin fig or ficus tree

Memories of my Weeping Fig

A few weeks ago, I had a fig tree removed from my front yard, as I had learned from a neighbour (who removed it for me) that the roots can do some real damage on the water pipes running under my front yard.

The stump of my Weeping Fig as it looks now:-(

I didn't want to have to cut the fig tree down, but neither did I want to foot a huge bill for having to get busted water pipes fixed because of root damage.

I found a few edible(?) green fig fruits on the ground after the tree was chopped down, which surprised me, as I never knew that tree bore fruit.

I was inspired to buy some caramelized fig jam from my local supermarket in honour of the fallen tree and its fruit species.

FIGJAM?-)

That's the best fig jam I've ever tasted

How did that figgin' song get into this post?-)
With podcast hosts Rob and Trish MacGregor living in Florida, I found it ironic to read on Wikipedia about the weeping fig -

The United States Forest Service states, "Roots grow rapidly, invading gardens, growing under and lifting sidewalks, patios, and driveways."

They conclude that its use in tree form is much too large for residential planting; therefore, in these settings, this species should only be used as a hedge or clipped screen.
These trees are also considered a high risk to succumb to storm gale winds in hurricane-prone south Florida.

As a consequence, in many jurisdictions in South Florida no permit is required for removal of these trees.

The South Florida Water District recommends removing these trees.

There is Harmony in Everything, It's a Butterfly Who Waits for the World?

The crow butterfly photo of mine on my credit card

I also found out after I had removed the fig that crow butterflies love these latex filled trees.
"The common crow is distasteful due to chemicals extracted from the latex of the food plants consumed in their caterpillar stage.

Thus protected, they fly in a leisurely manner, gliding skilfully with wings held slightly above the horizontal.

This indicates its protection due to inedibility to a predator.

The inexperienced predator will try attacking it, but will learn soon enough to avoid this butterfly as the alkaloids in its body cause vomiting.
The butterfly has tough, leathery wings.

When attacked it shams death and oozes liquid which causes any predators to release them and become nauseous.

Once released the butterfly "recovers miraculously" and flies off.

Predators experience enough trauma that the characteristics of the butterfly are imprinted in memory."

I don't think the crow butterfly is a part of nature's medicine cabinet by the sounds, or taste of it;-)

I also liked the discussion around water in 'The Mystical Underground' podcast .

What the bleep is water?

Sometimes we just can't see the water for the trees:-)

What is Water?

Concerns that the Ibis poo could
potentially make a child sick?!

There's always drama surrounding trees ... and ibis ... it seems;-)

What Are We Going to Do About the Ibis?

UPDATE: February 27th, 2021

My little brother's balloon caught in a giant fig tree:-)

February 24th was my late older brother's birthday, and when I went over to my younger brothers place that evening I was asking him what him and mum did today (my mother lives with him) and he said that one of the ladies who used to look after my older brother paid a visit that day and gave them a helium filled balloon each to write a few words to my late brother on and release into the sky.

My older brother couldn't talk since birth or read when he was alive, so that was an interesting exercise I thought:-)

But anyway, my younger brother told me that my mother's and the carer's balloons both raced up out of sight into the sky, but my younger brother's balloon hit the top of the giant fig tree behind his home and stayed there.

He took me around to see the balloon and I took a few photos of it with my zoom lens on my cell phone.

I'll bet if I had have released a balloon that day it wouldn't have got caught in a fig tree, because FIGJAM:-)

Like I wrote above, there is always drama around trees:-)

Ladybug Symbolism?