Bloom where we are planted

May we never forget the crippled, wind-beaten trees, how they, too, bud, green and bloom. May we, too, take courage to bloom where we are planted.

BR. DAVID STEINDL-RAST(gratefulness.org) Methuselah Until 2013, Methuselah, an ancient bristlecone pine was the oldest known non-clonal organism on Earth. While Methuselah still stands as of 2016 at the ripe old age of 4,848 in the White Mountains of California, in Inyo National Forest, another bristlecone pine in the area was discovered to be over 5,000 years old. Methuselah and its unnamed senior pine's exact locations are kept a close secret in order to protect them. You can still visit the grove where Methuselah hides, but you'll have to guess at which tree it is. Could this one be it? These OLDEST LIVING BEINGS on the planet grow on the North side of the White Mountains in acidic soul where nothing else can grow. I have been fortunate to visit them. There are some dead ones up to 9000 ft. that are known to be over 7000 years old. The locals used them for firewood, until the 1960's when they found out by modern means how old they were, then they created a National Park to protect them. They are from 5000 to 9000ft high and you can hike up from the parking lot at about 6000 ft or so.