Broccoli is harvested two to three times from the plant, as can trees actually. because the roots will survive for a pretty long time when not damaged themselves. You actually CAN unsaw a tree. from the still living roots new (at first) tiny plants will grow, these can if not harmed grow as big as the broccoli tree. and can even be harvested and planted as seedlings in a small broccoli tree box for someone willing to care for it.
vlogbrothers I am a high school librarian and a few of my students re-read your books hoping they will end differently, with their favorite character staying alive or happy. I like this optimism and bravery. The bravery most of all because they prove to themselves that they can endure loss and having no say in how a story unfolds. Thank you for helping them gently develop resilience which is what this parable made me think about. Thank you John.
Fun fact, the broccoli tree may be gone, but it has birthed a new one as the stumps of this breed of tree can regrow trees. A new broccoli tree is growing, bcuz while yes we will always have folks destroyin trees; the trees will always regrow.
I think this story shows both the best and worst in humanity and is a proxy for many other situatuions, both on the web and irl. I didn't even know about this tree 4 minutes ago, but it felt like a part of my life until it was ripped away from me by those people who would saw it down. Thank you for this beautiful but tragic story, John. It really made me think.
For real. The amount I cared about a tree that 2 1/2 minutes prior I did not know existed, is impressive. I think it says a lot about many things; How gifted John is at telling stories, as well as how gifted the human brain is at getting attached to things, and caring about things.
While hard to quantify or qualify...and I am not keeping track since there are some of your early videos that I have never seen, but this is certainly one of the best you have ever made.
My reactions: A tree? Ok... it’s a tree... yeah it looks like broccoli... but it’s just a tree. Well it’s a pretty cool tree. I really like this tree. Look at everyone loving this tree! This is an amazing tree!!! What? Something’s wrong with it? But... no.... no.... the tree... the poor poor tree... *watery eyes* the tree.... broccoli tree...
4 years too late to this party. I've never heard of the Broccoli Tree or saw its picture before. But I am moved to real tears over its loss. Mourning something that you never knew before it was lost is kinda weird.
Well, I was not expecting to spend four minutes falling in love with a tree and then sob when I find out that it had been cut down. Thank you for sharing this story with us, John.
Fun fact, the broccoli tree may be gone, but it has birthed a new one as the stumps of this breed of tree can regrow trees. A new broccoli tree is growing, bcuz while yes we will always have folks destroyin trees; the trees will always regrow.
I visited the site of the destroyed Golden Spruce tree in Haida Gwaii last year. It was somber, but really, the forest had swallowed up the tree again already, and it mostly just felt like any BC forest. Life had gone on. I also visited the site where a small golden spruce cutting had been planted in a nearby town. It was surrounded by chainlink fence topped with barbed wire. Never could a fallen tree be half as heartbreaking as a tree in a cage.
Courtney Fleming I’m Haida, and it’s absolutely heart breaking knowing that the golden spruce was cut down. To protest deforestation of all things. Sometimes when I think of it to much I get really angry and disappointed. Not only for the golden spruce but for all the things people decide to take. It’s senseless and unnecessary, but you have to consider why it happens. Why do people want to take what others find joy in or comfort in. I honestly think that some people are just so unhappy in the world that they just want to drag others down so they aren’t as lonely while they wallow in self pity and hatred. But on the other side of the coin there are those who celebrate in the light of creation. Not god per say but art, happiness, company, life, and love. Art like all these pictures are things I absolutely love to see, something so simple as this probably brought joy to a lot of people in some way. Remember to respect the world around you. Anything can be art. Don’t be someone who tears others down but someone who helps others rise up. And remember to create, create what you love and enjoy. Because you never know when it might bring others joy as well as yourself. As always, be the change you want to see in the world.
John Green, you never cease to absolutely amaze me with your prose. In the space of 3 minutes you introduced me to a tree, made me fall deeply in love with it, be absolutely devastated by its loss, and now I feel like I'll be grieving The Broccoli Tree for the forseeable future. Thank you for moving me.
I live in a city where there's was a lake with a log sticking out of it near the road. People painted the log to look like a dragon and it became a beloved landmark. Because who doesn't love a lake dragon right? But in the night someone boated out to the dragon, sawed it off, and took it. But. The community, saddened by the loss of their dragon that had been but a coincidence in the first place made a new dragon and installed it where the old one had been. It's monitored by a dragon committee, and removed before the lake ices over. And I love him every time I get to drive by that lake. We can't un-saw a tree (or a dragon log), and that's tragic. But a community can come together and build something new. Re-plant a tree, re-install a dragon, and have something that the community can protect and love as something that they were a part of. Community building and collective belonging to an object created out of love for something else is an amazing thing to see happen. All because there used to be a log that stuck out of a lake, that kind of looked like a dragon.
Omggg thank you for this comment. You restored the little faith in humanity I had before I watched this video 😂. The fact that we can always find a way to come together and celebrate something as long as we continue to love and respect each other is beautiful 😭.
@@EwemizDreamsRawks I had completely forgotten about this comment! Thanks for commenting and reminding me of my favourite lake dragon :) I hope they were good tears
This was the saddest thing, John. Why did you do this to me? I was not prepared. How was I supposed to know a Broccoli Tree was going to break my heart?
Fun fact, the broccoli tree may be gone, but it has birthed a new one as the stumps of this breed of tree can regrow trees. A new broccoli tree is growing, bcuz while yes we will always have folks destroyin trees; the trees will always regrow.
It's not often you hear a story told in the second person, I like it :) Also, while it's true that you can't un-saw a tree, you can't un-see it either, there still remains the fact that there are people out there that seem determined to ruin everyone's fun. And while they may say _it's just a tree._ That kind of statement works against them too, because they cared so much about it to remove it from everyone else.
I enjoy this story. I only know of the tree through this video yet something in me went with it when I found out that it's gone. It's similar to a lone phone booth story I heard from 99pi. 99percentinvisible.org/episode/mojave-phone-booth/
ugh that last sentence of your comment is just...right in the feels. " they cared so much about it to remove it from everyone else" gonna have to remember that idea. It's just like how at a certian point people being mean, hateful, rude, whatever is past the point of just not liking someone/something, you've gotta care or want to cause a reaction and be noticed to hate something that much. You have to feel some type of way about it not just indifferent to a tree exisiting that sometimes people take pictures of.
I don't think the people who cut it down can tell themselves "it's just a tree" It's just a box in the road drive around it, it's just an internet troll I'll ignore it, it's just a little rain I'll stay in today. These are examples of "it's just a" and if it warrants that prefix we ignore and we don't care. We have better things to do than waste our time with it. This vandalism was on the opposite end of the spectrum. This is bitterness. This requires caring so very much. Not about the tree but the happiness the vandal can take from anyone who wants to enjoy the tree.
A lot of bad things have been justified by words starting with "It's just a...." Sadly I don't think we'll ever reach a point in humanity where this statement will not be accurate. However, I take solace in the fact that as a majority we are slowly changing the world so that those words are said less.
I usually leave some clever or punchy comment to brighten the mood but it would feel disrespectful given that what I just watched is one of the most beautifully written short-videos on this website. Thank you for making my eyes watery over a broccoli-shaped tree, John. I'll be sure to spend the next hour writing subtitles to share this with more people.
Every three months or so, I come here, watch this video, cry a little, watch it again, and then I go on with my day. I too want to share things I love, even if that means to risk loosing them.
For a moment, I found myself thinking: why did I not know about this tree, living reasonably close to it? Then, I realized that I live close to many trees, not less special than this one, but with the difference that people forget to appreciate them. Why is it, that things have to become famous for us to appreciate them to the fullest?
K I That’s so true. There was really nothing special at all with this tree, it’s just what you SEE in things, or places. In this case, I made it visible to others what I saw. 👋🌳💚
"To share something is to risk losing it" this rings so true to me, maybe too true. This is the inspiration that I needed to start writing today, thank you John.
John, this video made me nostalgic for something i hadn't known exsisted a minute ago... This always seems to happen with your videos, and i love it more than i should.
With rock and stone... Hoom Toom Boom. It is likely enough that we are going to our doom... That thought has long been growing in our hearts; and that is why we are marching now. It was not a hasty resolve. Now at least the last march of the Ents may be worth a song. :(
BTW, I keep the LotR books near my bed and I read a little before falling asleep each night. I had _just_ finished that part a couple of nights ago. :/ The broccoli tree had a voice of its own. Through the people that loved it. They will sing of it for some time to come. :)
"To share something is to risk losing it". As someone who also aspires to make art about what is important to me, this is touching. I agree that sharing something beautiful can preserve it in ways that you never imagined if you just kept it close and shut out others. We risk losing so much in the process of sharing, and it will always be a selfless act. I appreciate Patrik for sharing with John, and John for sharing with me. Long live the Broccoli Tree.
This is so true of one's own self as well. When you are vulnerable and share yourself with others you risk being attacked, but if you don't show your true self your impact can be inevitably so much smaller.
I don’t know if it’s possible but this author and artist needs formal recognition for this melancholy masterpiece. This is the apex of short film production. Everything this film does, it does perfectly. Thank you from Boston
This is just beautiful.. and sad. I almost teared when the picture of the saw-wound popped up. Haven't heard of the Broccoli-Tree before. Thanks für sharing this story, I really enjoyed the experience!
why für and not for? Was this some kind of stylistic choice, or just a typo? Am I correct in my assumption that für and for are pronounced basically the same? Am I reading waaaay too much into a random, possibly misspelled word in the middle of a sentence on a youtube comment because that video is making me be overly observant?
This is a (for me) pretty funny misspelling ^^ I think my fatigued and slightly caffeinated brain was eager to express itself in the most 'denglisch' way possible. I'm gonna leave it there as a remembrance of how human we all are. Deep enough 'für' reading into this? ;)
In which John baffles everyone again by his amazing ability to find something inspirational in something seemingly irrelevant. It shouldn't, but it keeps amazing me
These videos of John just narrating with images for the video portion always put me in a serene and calm state. Give me a lot to think about. Thank you
I knew when this was first posted that it was a parable about loss and the guilt that follows. I’m feeling that guilt super hard right now. We had to say goodbye our beautiful Airdale Madeline, and I just wish I could spend one more day at the lake with her. Such a beautiful dog with a humongous heart. Her kindness and empathy leaving the world at this hour is just cruel. Thank you being there for me in the little ways that you do, John. It means more than I think I am able to express.
Thanks for the great stories, every time I watch this channel (or see crashcourse at school) or read one of your books, I'm glad I did. I really admire the way you use language.
Both John and Hank have such a beautiful way with words and conveying information and emotion. It's always such a privilege to observe and reflect on any work they create. :)
It was a beautiful tree, alas now gone, What makes me really sad though is the person or people who wanted to make their statement to world by attacking it. How can they have got to a state where they thought that was the right thing for them to do? Were they just after brief reflected fame or were they in so much pain they just wanted to strike out at something they saw giving other people joy - to make the world hurt as much as they did. We'll never know.
One of the challenges of the contemporary social internet is that often it only takes a few people to ruin things--or even only one person, as is the case with the Broccoli Tree. Add that to the fact that being toxic online (and off) is sometimes rewarded--by attention, by engagement, by feelings of power--and it becomes really difficult for anything to survive and thrive. I don't have a way out of this. My instinct is to retreat, but I'm not sure that will accomplish anything. -John
The way I try to look at it is that we are many and they are few. By "we" I mean people with empathy who care about the world and each other. By "they" I mean the lonely, angry and confused who, by and large, are those that lash out both online and off. In fact, although the internet can amplify the voice of a tiny minority to make them seem genuinely threatening, it also means we know where they are and can reach out to open the possibility of dialogue - even though it often seems almost impossible. If there was one show I wish Complexly would look into making it would be one to focus on bringing people together with opposing views on controversial topics just to show that it is possible to have respectful disagreement without needing to resort to the kind of reflexive anger we encounter so often online.
+David Durant I think that's a good point to make, especially because I personally have super strong opinions about Most Things and can find it really hard to interact w/ people who think differently than me. Also, it isn't a Complexly series, but have you heard of "Conversations With People Who Hate Me"? It's a podcast that Dylan Marron ran last year that does what it sounds like, & is pretty similar to what you suggested in a way.
Herostratic fame has been a problem for thousands of years-- perhaps as long as humans have had a sense of notoriety. Perhaps I am misapplying the term, though, as the tree's assassin doesn't seem to have staked a claim to tie his name to it. It's hard to say how to combat this sort of thing without having a sense of the who or the why that isn't built so much of supposition. I can say that it was someone who wanted the feeling of power in the destruction, or who was unhappy and wanted to lash out at a totem of other people's happiness, and those might bear some accuracy, but that's me trying to imagine what this person was thinking. Perhaps what they wanted was for people to speculate about them, and try to imagine what they were thinking. The problem with speculative thought is in assigning any weight to the speculations we make. Ultimately, I think the answer is to love what we love without reservation, to share our loves widely that others might get to love them too, and to suffer through the suck when it happens, not romanticizing our pain, but remembering what a wise man wrote: it hurts because it matters. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_Artemis#Destruction (for the source of the term "Herostratic fame". I stumbled across it a few years ago, while crawling through the Wonders wiki pages, and it was a concept odd enough that it stuck)
DanThePropMan I have a theroy that anything can be an existential crisis if John Green talks about it for 3 minutes. Proof - thoughts from places vids.
I don't want to minimize John's contribution, but I think that seeing this sequence of pictures with the audio muted would have had almost the same effect. About half-way through, I started saying, "no, no, no," and then searched on google maps for it, only to see the note "permanently closed". The existential crisis is already there; it's there every time you hear about a mass shooting, or a bombing, or see something beautiful defaced or destroyed. Things of beauty take time, destruction takes almost no time at all.
You are such a great storyteller, John. You just made me cry over a tree. It certainly speaks to a wider truth about people. I generally take the view that people are basically good, but unfortunately it can be relied upon that at least a few people are not, or at the very least that they are selfish or unthinking. It's true that the meaning of the broccoli tree is constructed, but so is all meaning and it makes it no less beautiful. What a moving message at the end that, despite the risk one takes in sharing beauty, it is richer for being shared, even if it does not last as long as it would have done otherwise. Thank you, John. One of my new favourite videos.
So imagine that the broccoli tree represents something personal you have discovered that you are hesitant to share because you haven't found the confidence yet. Then when you decide to let other people know, they really like it, and your broccoli tree gives joy to all who come across it. But then someone is really negative and kills your broccoli tree. You regret your decision of sharing the broccoli tree with others. But eventually you learn that there will always be people that will cut trees, but that this should not cause you to lose hope.Now I see broccoli trees everywhere. Even this comment has become a mini broccoli tree. So, don't let the fear of hate keep you from sharing your broccoli tree. Because broccoli trees are more beautiful when being shared.
Ugghhhh John Green stop making me cry. I came back to this video from your Reddit post about videos that would be good Anthropocene Reviewed book topics. I think this would be so great, as evidenced by the tears that I'm shedding right now. Thanks for being such an amazing writer!
This vid is still in my playlist no matter how many years have passed and here I am rewatching it. The whole vid just left me speechless. I appreciate your speech and the way you express your idea. Thank you John and know that I'm one of fan.
I do wonder what goes on in the heads of people who see something someone loves and wish to destroy it, just because someone loves it. They must be very sad, and lonely, and empty.
A lot of people are viewing this video in a negative light saying humans are greedy and bad for wanting to take away something. Keep in mind, as the video says, that was only one or a few people. The tree made thousands of people happy and connected people in a way that one would never expect from a broccoli tree. Like it says, it’s beauty still lives on. Don’t let a few mean people ruin what we all once cherished. Remember the good times. They’re what keep us going. Thanks, John. This was a beautiful video.
This video is probably the most beautiful one I've seen in a very long time. It hits hard on my nostalgia about the mango tree at my grandmother's. She moved a couple years ago and I no longer get to see it anymore. But as they say, A thing of beauty is a joy forever.
Would organically shaped damage (what I assume a horse girdling a tree would look like) be easier to manage than a straight cut from a saw? I want to assume yes, but I also think amputated fleshy bits are easier attached with surgically straight cuts, so I don't know. As well, you couldn't undo the history of the damage to the tree, just rectify it, and in that regard, you cannot unsaw a tree.
I followed the Broccoli Tree for about a year on Instagram before it got cut down. My sister always thought it was weird that I was following a tree, but I really enjoyed seeing the changes in the pictures and the beautiful landscape. I didn't realize how invested I was in it until I saw the post about it being gone.
In a way, this video has become a broccoli tree for me. I keep coming back to it. I react differently to it depending on my mood, and how my day has gone. I’ve given it a thumbs up and shared it and linked to it from other social media sites. It feels intensely personal and private, like part of a late-night conversation between just you and me, exposing our innermost secrets, but I don’t want to hoard it for myself. I want other people to see it and appreciate it with me. John, you made a video about something lovely being destroyed, and in doing so turned a tragedy into something beautiful. I love all the silliness, inside jokes, and peanut butter faces, but the main reason I watch Vlog Brothers is that you highlight the awesome in the world. Thank you!
I think this is without a doubt one of your best videos, so I made this poem about it. Hope everyone likes it. The man who made it seen Common and so simple Yet beautiful and different. Art is a book waiting to be written. A canvas waiting to be painted. Possibilities awakened By the vision of a man. It is nothing without him, Yet he betrays it. He needs to share it with whom he can. It's not only his to see. So he reveals it to the world And it indeed starts to be, Aknowlegded. It's art! People come from overseas Just to have a glimpse (at that tree) And the consequences start. Once he shares it, its not his. He's its creator indeed Yet it belongs to art. It gains value, and greed Comes, takes the freed vision and tears it apart. He questions the motive, If the fault is his... If sharing it was worth it, Or he should have forfeited The moment he thought of this. The conflict gets worse... He doesn't know how to feel. What before seemed like nothing Changed him when he made it real. Well I say it's worth it! Although it's unfortunate, The man is very fortunate To have made his loss, not just his. He shared it with the people, Who lost it too as he made it, Also a part of them. While not his but art's, It still lives in the hearts And memories of the men. The ones who saw it With their eyes Know the pain deep inside Of the man who made it seen.
I used to like to write in second person. I would even do informational essays in second person sometimes. But my teachers always told me that you weren't really supposed to write in second person and people only ever really wrote in third and first person. So I stopped writing in second person. Which is really too bad becuase as I listened to this video I was reminded of why I liked to write using 'you'. It doesn't make me feel like I am being told the personal story of someone else, or that someone is telling me the story of another person. It makes me feel like I am a part of the story, someone is telling my story. It makes me feel like the content of whatever is being told is important and relevant to me, and has significance which I can relate to. And by far the best part about about second person is that it gives that feeling to everyone who hears it, and thereby connects everyone back to that original significance on a personal level. Sorry that this is a particularly long comment that has little to do with the actual content of the video, I just reall like second person narration.
Thanks for your stories. There's always something exploring in your channel which is fantastic. But It makes me so sad. It reminds of something sharing something is like showing the world and putting it in danger. Your words are touching.
Of course John Green would share a story of a dead tree. Then again it's such a wonderful metaphor for the things we come across in life. That we might fall in love with then have them killed right before us. like idk Augustus Waters.
“And the truth is, if we hoard and hide what we love, we can still lose it. Only then, we’re alone in the loss. You can’t un-saw a tree, but you can’t unsee one either. The Broccoli tree is gone, but its beauty survives.”
"Sharing something is to risk losing it..." This encapsulates something that has been going around in my head for far too long. Thank you. RIP Broccoli Tree
I want to cry. What a beautiful tree. Thanks John for finding a beautiful way to open my eyes to stories I didn’t know about and seeing the good in the sharing even if it’s risky.
From Seth, who produced and edited this video! (I just wrote it.) Seth makes Eons, one of our collaborations with PBS Digital. ruclips.net/channel/UCzR-rom72PHN9Zg7RML9EbA -John
That is DEEP. So wonderful how something so simple and something that many of us take for granted so often, can be used to describe the meaning of life. Thank you John.
damn, i lived only 5 kilometers away from the broccoli tree! i never even knew it existed and now it's gone... i would have loved to shoot a vlog in front of that majestic tree 😟
Pick another tree and talk about it, or visit the site and show people who are still interested. The Broccoli Tree wasn’t magic, it’s one of many and maybe you can make another tree famous for a little while.
A friend and I were talking about what makes humans so unique from other animals. It was a light hearted conversation, without any real conclusions. After watching this video I think I found my answer. Humans are the only species to destroy something someone else loves, simply because someone else loves it. Not because we need it gone in order to survive, just because it bring others something we don’t have, and that alone is enough to enrage us to the point of destruction. We are the only species that, when incapable of fulfilling our own emotional need, we require those around us to feel just as hollow. Even though we know doing so will not being us any joy or satisfy any needs. I want to curl into a ball and dream about life as a house cat or wild eagle, where at least if I’m hurt I know why I’m hurting.
The Sycamore Gap tree in the UK has been cut down by vandals now. They've arrested some teenager who they think did it. How do you even go about dealing with such a person.
That actually hurt my heart. I was totally caught up with your story telling, they way you were describing the pictures, the photographer, the tree, the growing fandom, I had actually becomes emotionally invested in what was happening. Then, it was over and the tree was gone. That happy moment turned to reflection and a small bit of heartbreak for a tree on the other side of the world. This is going to follow me around in my thoughts for awhile. Thank you for sharing this.
I hardly ever comment on this channel but I absolutely love when jonh does these types of videos. It strikes a good balance of introspection/observations while not being overly pretentious. Incredible work
Doesn't matter at all to the person who did that. All he wanted to achieve is to destroy something others made a big deal about. For him, the best satisfaction is to see how "broken" people are that this happened.
So who cut down the tree? And where did the wood go? Is the tree on someone's property that he/she decided to cut it down, or was this an act of vandalism?
99 Percent Invisible did a story about a phone booth in the middle of the Mojave Desert. The guy who saw it note the number and began to call it multiple times daily. It was eventually picked up by a rancher who told him about it. He then posted it on the early internet (It was the 90s) and it became a low key viral success. Eventually people would call it around the world so much that it would constantly ring. When he returned he spent hours talking from people around the world. People would go there just to answer it and talk to people around the world. Sadly the park association took the phone box as it was disturbing the wildlife. Even good things must end.
Thank you for this message, John. There's something special and safe about keeping something you love to yourself, whether that be a tree, or a RUclipsr, or a band, or anything at all. And there's vulnerability and a fear of loss and so much else when you begin to share that with others, too. But sometimes, you need to reflect and allow the things you love to grow out of your own hands and into the world. And it's worth it because it will make others love, and feel safe, and happy. There's always the potential for loss, or death, or whatever else it may be. But that shouldn't make us stop caring or loving or sharing. A momentary happiness is better than no happiness at all.
That pun "un-saw," it provided a bit of comedic relief but I still feel somewhat angered. But the fact that the Broccoli Tree was known and cherished by many, it feels heartwarming :)
here I am getting emotional about a tree I never even knew existed
Ellie Does Life I know. I audibly gasped when he showed the saw mark.
me
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Me too, first time tearing up over a RUclips video
"To share something is to risk losing it."
Wow.
EmperorViking That was deep..
Also true with relationships, a thought which almost made me cry.
Speechless.
Yup. And we all face loss whether alone or with others. Our choice.
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Not even the tree survives in a story by John Green
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is it regrowing tho?
Broccoli is harvested two to three times from the plant, as can trees actually. because the roots will survive for a pretty long time when not damaged themselves. You actually CAN unsaw a tree. from the still living roots new (at first) tiny plants will grow, these can if not harmed grow as big as the broccoli tree. and can even be harvested and planted as seedlings in a small broccoli tree box for someone willing to care for it.
Maiara Vilela ++++++
vlogbrothers I am a high school librarian and a few of my students re-read your books hoping they will end differently, with their favorite character staying alive or happy. I like this optimism and bravery. The bravery most of all because they prove to themselves that they can endure loss and having no say in how a story unfolds. Thank you for helping them gently develop resilience which is what this parable made me think about. Thank you John.
How sad that some of us are so incapable of sharing in happiness over simple things, that we destroy something simply because other people love it.
This statement is incredible. Deep truth.
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squttnbear ^
They cought the guys that cut it, they were a couple of arab immigrants.
Jessica Noory That's good.
Edit: That they caught the is good. Just thought I should clear that up a bit.
"If we hoard and hide what we love, we can still lose it, but then we are alone in the loss."
My heart.
Fun fact, the broccoli tree may be gone, but it has birthed a new one as the stumps of this breed of tree can regrow trees. A new broccoli tree is growing, bcuz while yes we will always have folks destroyin trees; the trees will always regrow.
That line by the way was somethin that helped me decide to come out.
and now John.... you can't uncry a tear.
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This comment is slightly undermined by the Homer Simpson in your RUclips account photo.
I don't know if I have never been so sad and angry and captivated because of one tree in my life.
Last night the Sycamore Gap tree in England was cut down - 27th September, same date the Broccoli tree was attacked.
I come back to this video every once in a while. It helps me with problems that I still can’t describe. It just helps
The loss of the tree at Sycamore Gap today proves these people will never stop trying to ruin what others love.
I'm glad someone else had this thought too. Sycamore Gap was the first thing that came to mind when I saw the fate of this tree.
I think this story shows both the best and worst in humanity and is a proxy for many other situatuions, both on the web and irl. I didn't even know about this tree 4 minutes ago, but it felt like a part of my life until it was ripped away from me by those people who would saw it down. Thank you for this beautiful but tragic story, John. It really made me think.
On a certain level, you probably wouldn't have known the tree if those people didn't cut it down.
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For real. The amount I cared about a tree that 2 1/2 minutes prior I did not know existed, is impressive. I think it says a lot about many things; How gifted John is at telling stories, as well as how gifted the human brain is at getting attached to things, and caring about things.
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While hard to quantify or qualify...and I am not keeping track since there are some of your early videos that I have never seen, but this is certainly one of the best you have ever made.
Thanks. Most of the credit goes to Seth! I just wrote it. -John
Congratulations to you both then...and just to correct you a little...you wrote AND narrated it.
Agreed! Definitely one of your best, John. Thanks for making what you make and saying what you say.
vlogbrothers my favourite remains three farmers on their way to the dance but this is a close second
I agree, it's beautiful
My reactions: A tree? Ok... it’s a tree... yeah it looks like broccoli... but it’s just a tree. Well it’s a pretty cool tree. I really like this tree. Look at everyone loving this tree! This is an amazing tree!!! What? Something’s wrong with it? But... no.... no.... the tree... the poor poor tree... *watery eyes* the tree.... broccoli tree...
Same
yeah
It was an emotional rollercoaster alright. :( I was not prepared for these feels.
pretty much my exact journey.
Ditto /o\
4 years too late to this party. I've never heard of the Broccoli Tree or saw its picture before. But I am moved to real tears over its loss. Mourning something that you never knew before it was lost is kinda weird.
Well, I was not expecting to spend four minutes falling in love with a tree and then sob when I find out that it had been cut down. Thank you for sharing this story with us, John.
This was my exact reaction
I am both saddened and enraged. I hate feeling that way.
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What did the Whomping Willow say to the Broccoli Tree? Nothing, because it doesn't have a mouth.
It took about 4 months.
Fun fact, the broccoli tree may be gone, but it has birthed a new one as the stumps of this breed of tree can regrow trees. A new broccoli tree is growing, bcuz while yes we will always have folks destroyin trees; the trees will always regrow.
I visited the site of the destroyed Golden Spruce tree in Haida Gwaii last year. It was somber, but really, the forest had swallowed up the tree again already, and it mostly just felt like any BC forest. Life had gone on.
I also visited the site where a small golden spruce cutting had been planted in a nearby town. It was surrounded by chainlink fence topped with barbed wire. Never could a fallen tree be half as heartbreaking as a tree in a cage.
That is a beautiful quote "never could a fallen trees be half as heartbreaking as a tree in a cage."
I live in B.C. :)
Courtney Fleming I’m Haida, and it’s absolutely heart breaking knowing that the golden spruce was cut down. To protest deforestation of all things. Sometimes when I think of it to much I get really angry and disappointed. Not only for the golden spruce but for all the things people decide to take. It’s senseless and unnecessary, but you have to consider why it happens. Why do people want to take what others find joy in or comfort in. I honestly think that some people are just so unhappy in the world that they just want to drag others down so they aren’t as lonely while they wallow in self pity and hatred. But on the other side of the coin there are those who celebrate in the light of creation. Not god per say but art, happiness, company, life, and love. Art like all these pictures are things I absolutely love to see, something so simple as this probably brought joy to a lot of people in some way. Remember to respect the world around you. Anything can be art. Don’t be someone who tears others down but someone who helps others rise up. And remember to create, create what you love and enjoy. Because you never know when it might bring others joy as well as yourself. As always, be the change you want to see in the world.
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John Green, you never cease to absolutely amaze me with your prose. In the space of 3 minutes you introduced me to a tree, made me fall deeply in love with it, be absolutely devastated by its loss, and now I feel like I'll be grieving The Broccoli Tree for the forseeable future. Thank you for moving me.
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This hurt my heart.
Mine too; our hearts may be hurt but that brings the beauty (and perhaps the beast) within out
same it was still sweet and deep though i liked it
Choppin Broc-cccccohhh-LEEEEEEEEEE
I live in a city where there's was a lake with a log sticking out of it near the road. People painted the log to look like a dragon and it became a beloved landmark. Because who doesn't love a lake dragon right? But in the night someone boated out to the dragon, sawed it off, and took it.
But. The community, saddened by the loss of their dragon that had been but a coincidence in the first place made a new dragon and installed it where the old one had been. It's monitored by a dragon committee, and removed before the lake ices over. And I love him every time I get to drive by that lake.
We can't un-saw a tree (or a dragon log), and that's tragic. But a community can come together and build something new. Re-plant a tree, re-install a dragon, and have something that the community can protect and love as something that they were a part of. Community building and collective belonging to an object created out of love for something else is an amazing thing to see happen. All because there used to be a log that stuck out of a lake, that kind of looked like a dragon.
Omggg thank you for this comment. You restored the little faith in humanity I had before I watched this video 😂. The fact that we can always find a way to come together and celebrate something as long as we continue to love and respect each other is beautiful 😭.
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Thank you for this. It made my heart hurt less.
this is an old reply to an old video but i just want to tell you that this comment made me start crying after i thought i was done crying
@@EwemizDreamsRawks I had completely forgotten about this comment! Thanks for commenting and reminding me of my favourite lake dragon :) I hope they were good tears
This was the saddest thing, John. Why did you do this to me? I was not prepared. How was I supposed to know a Broccoli Tree was going to break my heart?
So many feels
Because the most useful wisdom are seldom comforting.
Fun fact, the broccoli tree may be gone, but it has birthed a new one as the stumps of this breed of tree can regrow trees. A new broccoli tree is growing, bcuz while yes we will always have folks destroyin trees; the trees will always regrow.
It's not often you hear a story told in the second person, I like it :) Also, while it's true that you can't un-saw a tree, you can't un-see it either, there still remains the fact that there are people out there that seem determined to ruin everyone's fun. And while they may say _it's just a tree._ That kind of statement works against them too, because they cared so much about it to remove it from everyone else.
I enjoy this story. I only know of the tree through this video yet something in me went with it when I found out that it's gone. It's similar to a lone phone booth story I heard from 99pi. 99percentinvisible.org/episode/mojave-phone-booth/
ugh that last sentence of your comment is just...right in the feels. " they cared so much about it to remove it from everyone else" gonna have to remember that idea. It's just like how at a certian point people being mean, hateful, rude, whatever is past the point of just not liking someone/something, you've gotta care or want to cause a reaction and be noticed to hate something that much. You have to feel some type of way about it not just indifferent to a tree exisiting that sometimes people take pictures of.
You're right, of course. The "it's just a tree" guy showed up a bit upstream^^^^. You called it.
I don't think the people who cut it down can tell themselves "it's just a tree"
It's just a box in the road drive around it, it's just an internet troll I'll ignore it, it's just a little rain I'll stay in today. These are examples of "it's just a" and if it warrants that prefix we ignore and we don't care. We have better things to do than waste our time with it.
This vandalism was on the opposite end of the spectrum. This is bitterness. This requires caring so very much. Not about the tree but the happiness the vandal can take from anyone who wants to enjoy the tree.
A lot of bad things have been justified by words starting with "It's just a...." Sadly I don't think we'll ever reach a point in humanity where this statement will not be accurate. However, I take solace in the fact that as a majority we are slowly changing the world so that those words are said less.
I'm always so happy when beautiful things like this happen on this channel. This is why I've watched for 5 years.
Thanks for sticking with us all this time! -John
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I’m nearing on 10 and totally agree ☺️☺️
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vlogbrothers You're welcome. DFTBA :)
I usually leave some clever or punchy comment to brighten the mood but it would feel disrespectful given that what I just watched is one of the most beautifully written short-videos on this website. Thank you for making my eyes watery over a broccoli-shaped tree, John. I'll be sure to spend the next hour writing subtitles to share this with more people.
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You are made of awesome for writing captions/subtitles. Thank you!
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Every three months or so, I come here, watch this video, cry a little, watch it again, and then I go on with my day. I too want to share things I love, even if that means to risk loosing them.
there are more of us than you would think
For a moment, I found myself thinking: why did I not know about this tree, living reasonably close to it?
Then, I realized that I live close to many trees, not less special than this one, but with the difference that people forget to appreciate them. Why is it, that things have to become famous for us to appreciate them to the fullest?
K I That’s so true. There was really nothing special at all with this tree, it’s just what you SEE in things, or places. In this case, I made it visible to others what I saw. 👋🌳💚
K I Tack tack :) Men akta dig för vad du gör känt ;)
Absolutely beautiful and heartbreaking. Thank you for this.
"To share something is to risk losing it" this rings so true to me, maybe too true. This is the inspiration that I needed to start writing today, thank you John.
John, this video made me nostalgic for something i hadn't known exsisted a minute ago... This always seems to happen with your videos, and i love it more than i should.
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Absolutely love this video...Such a powerful takeaway.
Mcjuggernuggets!?! Fancy seeing you here!
This is my favorite vlogbrothers video.
Come, my friends... the ents are going to war...
To Isengard we march.
With rock and stone... Hoom Toom Boom. It is likely enough that we are going to our doom... That thought has long been growing in our hearts; and that is why we are marching now. It was not a hasty resolve. Now at least the last march of the Ents may be worth a song. :(
BTW, I keep the LotR books near my bed and I read a little before falling asleep each night. I had _just_ finished that part a couple of nights ago. :/ The broccoli tree had a voice of its own. Through the people that loved it. They will sing of it for some time to come. :)
This could have been part of my favorite podcast: The Anthropocene Reviewed™.
I give the Broccoli Tree 4 Stars
I'm clearly going through a phase. :) -John
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Agree - The Anthropocene Reviewed has been great - and it has single handedly increased my Dr Pepper intake...
It single handedly increased my Canada goose intake
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"To share something is to risk losing it".
As someone who also aspires to make art about what is important to me, this is touching. I agree that sharing something beautiful can preserve it in ways that you never imagined if you just kept it close and shut out others. We risk losing so much in the process of sharing, and it will always be a selfless act. I appreciate Patrik for sharing with John, and John for sharing with me. Long live the Broccoli Tree.
I'm definitely going to have to sit a while and meditate on "If we horde and hide what we love, we still risk losing it."
Raina Ramsay when Hank or John make a video like this it always gets me contemplating on my commute
This is so true of one's own self as well. When you are vulnerable and share yourself with others you risk being attacked, but if you don't show your true self your impact can be inevitably so much smaller.
Thanks 👋💚🌳
I keep waiting for the "I give The Broccoli Tree 5 stars"
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I don’t know if it’s possible but this author and artist needs formal recognition for this melancholy masterpiece. This is the apex of short film production. Everything this film does, it does perfectly. Thank you from Boston
This is just beautiful.. and sad. I almost teared when the picture of the saw-wound popped up. Haven't heard of the Broccoli-Tree before. Thanks für sharing this story, I really enjoyed the experience!
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why für and not for? Was this some kind of stylistic choice, or just a typo? Am I correct in my assumption that für and for are pronounced basically the same? Am I reading waaaay too much into a random, possibly misspelled word in the middle of a sentence on a youtube comment because that video is making me be overly observant?
This is a (for me) pretty funny misspelling ^^
I think my fatigued and slightly caffeinated brain was eager to express itself in the most 'denglisch' way possible. I'm gonna leave it there as a remembrance of how human we all are.
Deep enough 'für' reading into this? ;)
In which John baffles everyone again by his amazing ability to find something inspirational in something seemingly irrelevant. It shouldn't, but it keeps amazing me
These videos of John just narrating with images for the video portion always put me in a serene and calm state. Give me a lot to think about. Thank you
I knew when this was first posted that it was a parable about loss and the guilt that follows. I’m feeling that guilt super hard right now. We had to say goodbye our beautiful Airdale Madeline, and I just wish I could spend one more day at the lake with her. Such a beautiful dog with a humongous heart. Her kindness and empathy leaving the world at this hour is just cruel.
Thank you being there for me in the little ways that you do, John. It means more than I think I am able to express.
Two years later and it still makes me cry. I love you.
Thanks for the great stories, every time I watch this channel (or see crashcourse at school) or read one of your books, I'm glad I did. I really admire the way you use language.
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Both John and Hank have such a beautiful way with words and conveying information and emotion. It's always such a privilege to observe and reflect on any work they create. :)
OMG, love this! Such a moving parable about live and loss, and the comfort of shared memories and experiences--community.
Thanks, Lori!
Lori Earl ooo
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amazing , now i understood how Brilliant john is as a author , the way of seeing things ... great
three years on and im still crying from this video.
"To summarize the summary of the summary: people are a problem." -- Douglas Adams
D' Otter sounds like douglas adams would have shopped at hot topic
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The dolphins are the smart ones
But people are also solutions
+Hundreds of people find joy and inspiration in the tree, a few people cut it down. I see the good there being greater than anything else.
This is my favorite John video ever.
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Possibly mine too!
Adorable baby is Adorable.
However it's miles behind even the weaker Hank videos.
Screw you people.
It was a beautiful tree, alas now gone, What makes me really sad though is the person or people who wanted to make their statement to world by attacking it. How can they have got to a state where they thought that was the right thing for them to do? Were they just after brief reflected fame or were they in so much pain they just wanted to strike out at something they saw giving other people joy - to make the world hurt as much as they did. We'll never know.
One of the challenges of the contemporary social internet is that often it only takes a few people to ruin things--or even only one person, as is the case with the Broccoli Tree. Add that to the fact that being toxic online (and off) is sometimes rewarded--by attention, by engagement, by feelings of power--and it becomes really difficult for anything to survive and thrive. I don't have a way out of this. My instinct is to retreat, but I'm not sure that will accomplish anything. -John
The way I try to look at it is that we are many and they are few. By "we" I mean people with empathy who care about the world and each other. By "they" I mean the lonely, angry and confused who, by and large, are those that lash out both online and off. In fact, although the internet can amplify the voice of a tiny minority to make them seem genuinely threatening, it also means we know where they are and can reach out to open the possibility of dialogue - even though it often seems almost impossible. If there was one show I wish Complexly would look into making it would be one to focus on bringing people together with opposing views on controversial topics just to show that it is possible to have respectful disagreement without needing to resort to the kind of reflexive anger we encounter so often online.
+David Durant I think that's a good point to make, especially because I personally have super strong opinions about Most Things and can find it really hard to interact w/ people who think differently than me.
Also, it isn't a Complexly series, but have you heard of "Conversations With People Who Hate Me"? It's a podcast that Dylan Marron ran last year that does what it sounds like, & is pretty similar to what you suggested in a way.
Herostratic fame has been a problem for thousands of years-- perhaps as long as humans have had a sense of notoriety. Perhaps I am misapplying the term, though, as the tree's assassin doesn't seem to have staked a claim to tie his name to it.
It's hard to say how to combat this sort of thing without having a sense of the who or the why that isn't built so much of supposition. I can say that it was someone who wanted the feeling of power in the destruction, or who was unhappy and wanted to lash out at a totem of other people's happiness, and those might bear some accuracy, but that's me trying to imagine what this person was thinking. Perhaps what they wanted was for people to speculate about them, and try to imagine what they were thinking. The problem with speculative thought is in assigning any weight to the speculations we make.
Ultimately, I think the answer is to love what we love without reservation, to share our loves widely that others might get to love them too, and to suffer through the suck when it happens, not romanticizing our pain, but remembering what a wise man wrote: it hurts because it matters.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_Artemis#Destruction (for the source of the term "Herostratic fame". I stumbled across it a few years ago, while crawling through the Wonders wiki pages, and it was a concept odd enough that it stuck)
+GlowingBlueIris I hadn't - thanks for the recommendation
How can you make a tree become an existential crisis?
Get John Green to talk about it, apparently.
DanThePropMan I have a theroy that anything can be an existential crisis if John Green talks about it for 3 minutes. Proof - thoughts from places vids.
Yes, John Green does seem to have a strange ability to impose existential crises on people, regardless of the media he's communicating it through.
It's, in my opinion, his greatest talent.
I don't want to minimize John's contribution, but I think that seeing this sequence of pictures with the audio muted would have had almost the same effect. About half-way through, I started saying, "no, no, no," and then searched on google maps for it, only to see the note "permanently closed".
The existential crisis is already there; it's there every time you hear about a mass shooting, or a bombing, or see something beautiful defaced or destroyed. Things of beauty take time, destruction takes almost no time at all.
It's been years but everytime I feel tired and weary I always come back to this video.
Me to, in fact I'm doing it now.
i come back to listen to this video like once a month and it's message never ceases to inspire
You are such a great storyteller, John. You just made me cry over a tree. It certainly speaks to a wider truth about people. I generally take the view that people are basically good, but unfortunately it can be relied upon that at least a few people are not, or at the very least that they are selfish or unthinking.
It's true that the meaning of the broccoli tree is constructed, but so is all meaning and it makes it no less beautiful. What a moving message at the end that, despite the risk one takes in sharing beauty, it is richer for being shared, even if it does not last as long as it would have done otherwise.
Thank you, John. One of my new favourite videos.
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I actually gasped when the tree was gone.
Pointless destruction makes me so sad. It makes you feel helpless.
But this video was beautiful.
So imagine that the broccoli tree represents something personal you have discovered that you are hesitant to share because you haven't found the confidence yet. Then when you decide to let other people know, they really like it, and your broccoli tree gives joy to all who come across it. But then someone is really negative and kills your broccoli tree. You regret your decision of sharing the broccoli tree with others. But eventually you learn that there will always be people that will cut trees, but that this should not cause you to lose hope.Now I see broccoli trees everywhere. Even this comment has become a mini broccoli tree. So, don't let the fear of hate keep you from sharing your broccoli tree. Because broccoli trees are more beautiful when being shared.
Talitha van Essen Beautifully written.
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Talitha van Essen 🌼🌼
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Ugghhhh John Green stop making me cry. I came back to this video from your Reddit post about videos that would be good Anthropocene Reviewed book topics. I think this would be so great, as evidenced by the tears that I'm shedding right now. Thanks for being such an amazing writer!
Where the hell is the lorax when you need him???
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K what is with the "+" somebody explain
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I'm crying over a dead tree I didn't even know existed 4 minutes ago. John, you can make me feel anything really
This vid is still in my playlist no matter how many years have passed and here I am rewatching it. The whole vid just left me speechless. I appreciate your speech and the way you express your idea. Thank you John and know that I'm one of fan.
I do wonder what goes on in the heads of people who see something someone loves and wish to destroy it, just because someone loves it. They must be very sad, and lonely, and empty.
Theocles Saturn You must be lonely...Poor you
I'm sorry for you. I hope someday something removes the darkness in your heart.
A lot of people are viewing this video in a negative light saying humans are greedy and bad for wanting to take away something. Keep in mind, as the video says, that was only one or a few people. The tree made thousands of people happy and connected people in a way that one would never expect from a broccoli tree. Like it says, it’s beauty still lives on. Don’t let a few mean people ruin what we all once cherished. Remember the good times. They’re what keep us going.
Thanks, John. This was a beautiful video.
Hi, I am crying over a video about a tree. John green does it again. Not surprised. But still amazed.
This video is probably the most beautiful one I've seen in a very long time. It hits hard on my nostalgia about the mango tree at my grandmother's. She moved a couple years ago and I no longer get to see it anymore. But as they say, A thing of beauty is a joy forever.
My heart physically hurt when the picture after the sawing came on the screen
You can un saw a tree if you are good at bark grafts. I saved an elm after it had been fully gurtled by a horse.
Hi Cody!! Love your channel!
I was actually going to comment something along the lines of this. Thank you, Cody, I love your work.
cody is like a personified motivational quote.
thanks for being you.
Would organically shaped damage (what I assume a horse girdling a tree would look like) be easier to manage than a straight cut from a saw? I want to assume yes, but I also think amputated fleshy bits are easier attached with surgically straight cuts, so I don't know.
As well, you couldn't undo the history of the damage to the tree, just rectify it, and in that regard, you cannot unsaw a tree.
You're kind of a pro at this though, and you can't protect your tree from angry or jealous people forever if they're determined to kill it :-s
I followed the Broccoli Tree for about a year on Instagram before it got cut down. My sister always thought it was weird that I was following a tree, but I really enjoyed seeing the changes in the pictures and the beautiful landscape. I didn't realize how invested I was in it until I saw the post about it being gone.
coming back to this for comfort. sycamore gap tree was cut down. another single tree in an open space. gone but not forgotten.
Damn. People will always cut down beautiful things
This is my favorite RUclips video. Every few months I come back to watch it
this is an emotional rollercoaster
In a way, this video has become a broccoli tree for me. I keep coming back to it. I react differently to it depending on my mood, and how my day has gone. I’ve given it a thumbs up and shared it and linked to it from other social media sites. It feels intensely personal and private, like part of a late-night conversation between just you and me, exposing our innermost secrets, but I don’t want to hoard it for myself. I want other people to see it and appreciate it with me. John, you made a video about something lovely being destroyed, and in doing so turned a tragedy into something beautiful. I love all the silliness, inside jokes, and peanut butter faces, but the main reason I watch Vlog Brothers is that you highlight the awesome in the world. Thank you!
This is one of my favourite videos ever, the tree may have been cut down, but it lives on, in all of us.
I can't believe you made me this emotional over a tree 😭😭😭
I think this is without a doubt one of your best videos, so I made this poem about it. Hope everyone likes it.
The man who made it seen
Common and so simple
Yet beautiful and different.
Art is a book waiting to be written.
A canvas waiting to be painted.
Possibilities awakened
By the vision of a man.
It is nothing without him,
Yet he betrays it.
He needs to share it with whom he can.
It's not only his to see.
So he reveals it to the world
And it indeed starts to be,
Aknowlegded. It's art!
People come from overseas
Just to have a glimpse (at that tree)
And the consequences start.
Once he shares it, its not his.
He's its creator indeed
Yet it belongs to art.
It gains value, and greed
Comes, takes the freed
vision and tears it apart.
He questions the motive,
If the fault is his...
If sharing it was worth it,
Or he should have forfeited
The moment he thought of this.
The conflict gets worse...
He doesn't know how to feel.
What before seemed like nothing
Changed him when he made it real.
Well I say it's worth it!
Although it's unfortunate,
The man is very fortunate
To have made his loss, not just his.
He shared it with the people,
Who lost it too as he made it,
Also a part of them.
While not his but art's,
It still lives in the hearts
And memories of the men.
The ones who saw it
With their eyes
Know the pain deep inside
Of the man who made it seen.
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Wow! Amazing poem.
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Coming back to this because of the Hadrian wall tree.
This is my absolute favorite video of vlogbrothers
I used to like to write in second person. I would even do informational essays in second person sometimes. But my teachers always told me that you weren't really supposed to write in second person and people only ever really wrote in third and first person. So I stopped writing in second person. Which is really too bad becuase as I listened to this video I was reminded of why I liked to write using 'you'. It doesn't make me feel like I am being told the personal story of someone else, or that someone is telling me the story of another person. It makes me feel like I am a part of the story, someone is telling my story. It makes me feel like the content of whatever is being told is important and relevant to me, and has significance which I can relate to. And by far the best part about about second person is that it gives that feeling to everyone who hears it, and thereby connects everyone back to that original significance on a personal level. Sorry that this is a particularly long comment that has little to do with the actual content of the video, I just reall like second person narration.
Thanks for your stories. There's always something exploring in your channel which is fantastic.
But It makes me so sad. It reminds of something sharing something is
like showing the world and putting it in danger. Your words are touching.
Sadia Afrin rt6ty
I love the way you frame this thought, that "sharing something is...putting it in danger."
I never thought I would get an emotional response from a tree.
Of course John Green would share a story of a dead tree. Then again it's such a wonderful metaphor for the things we come across in life. That we might fall in love with then have them killed right before us. like idk Augustus Waters.
I think about this video at least once a week
This is now one of my favorite vlogbrothers videos of all time
Hey quick question how does a man I don’t know make me cry over a tree I had never heard of
That's the magic of language and shared experience.
That was deep. And now, I'm sad that I did not know of the Broccoli Tree before it was gone...
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“And the truth is, if we hoard and hide what we love, we can still lose it. Only then, we’re alone in the loss. You can’t un-saw a tree, but you can’t unsee one either. The Broccoli tree is gone, but its beauty survives.”
"Sharing something is to risk losing it..."
This encapsulates something that has been going around in my head for far too long. Thank you.
RIP Broccoli Tree
I want to cry. What a beautiful tree. Thanks John for finding a beautiful way to open my eyes to stories I didn’t know about and seeing the good in the sharing even if it’s risky.
How did you hear about the broccoli tree?
From Seth, who produced and edited this video! (I just wrote it.) Seth makes Eons, one of our collaborations with PBS Digital. ruclips.net/channel/UCzR-rom72PHN9Zg7RML9EbA -John
Thank you for continuing to connect us to awesome people and ideas, John! Can't wait to check this out. DFTBA from a 9 year nerdfighter
Thinking of the Sycamore Gap
RITree
"well, an old stump is a good for sitting and resting. Come, Boy, sit down. Sit down and rest."
And the boy did.
And the tree was happy.”
luckily the tree will most likely grow back
The stumps from this particular tree don't look good for resting, but I get your point. Man, that was a good book.
I seriously just started crying. This is one of the most beautiful stories I've ever heard and touching videos I've ever seen. This is a work of art.
That is DEEP. So wonderful how something so simple and something that many of us take for granted so often, can be used to describe the meaning of life. Thank you John.
damn, i lived only 5 kilometers away from the broccoli tree! i never even knew it existed and now it's gone... i would have loved to shoot a vlog in front of that majestic tree 😟
:(
Do a vlog in front of the stumps about how greedy people destroy everything. Bobbyj.wysocki-GREED DESTROYS EVERYTHING.
Pick another tree and talk about it, or visit the site and show people who are still interested. The Broccoli Tree wasn’t magic, it’s one of many and maybe you can make another tree famous for a little while.
Damn
You didnt get the point of the video now did you
A friend and I were talking about what makes humans so unique from other animals. It was a light hearted conversation, without any real conclusions. After watching this video I think I found my answer.
Humans are the only species to destroy something someone else loves, simply because someone else loves it.
Not because we need it gone in order to survive, just because it bring others something we don’t have, and that alone is enough to enrage us to the point of destruction.
We are the only species that, when incapable of fulfilling our own emotional need, we require those around us to feel just as hollow. Even though we know doing so will not being us any joy or satisfy any needs.
I want to curl into a ball and dream about life as a house cat or wild eagle, where at least if I’m hurt I know why I’m hurting.
Caitlyn Jones your are narrow minded if you think that.
So many much worst things happen yet now you decide to say that, after you hear something detailed and not just "Breaking news: school shooting"
The Sycamore Gap tree in the UK has been cut down by vandals now. They've arrested some teenager who they think did it. How do you even go about dealing with such a person.
That actually hurt my heart. I was totally caught up with your story telling, they way you were describing the pictures, the photographer, the tree, the growing fandom, I had actually becomes emotionally invested in what was happening. Then, it was over and the tree was gone. That happy moment turned to reflection and a small bit of heartbreak for a tree on the other side of the world. This is going to follow me around in my thoughts for awhile. Thank you for sharing this.
I hardly ever comment on this channel but I absolutely love when jonh does these types of videos. It strikes a good balance of introspection/observations while not being overly pretentious. Incredible work
To anyone who destroys just for attention...just notice that the guy who destroyed this tree got no attention. No one knows who that person is.
Doesn't matter at all to the person who did that. All he wanted to achieve is to destroy something others made a big deal about. For him, the best satisfaction is to see how "broken" people are that this happened.
well if people found out who he is i'm sure someone would saw his hands and feet off
It clearly wasn't done for attention. The destroyer got exactly what he wanted.
So who cut down the tree? And where did the wood go? Is the tree on someone's property that he/she decided to cut it down, or was this an act of vandalism?
Im going to start to photograph my noisy neighbour's house and share it everyday.
99 Percent Invisible did a story about a phone booth in the middle of the Mojave Desert. The guy who saw it note the number and began to call it multiple times daily. It was eventually picked up by a rancher who told him about it. He then posted it on the early internet (It was the 90s) and it became a low key viral success. Eventually people would call it around the world so much that it would constantly ring. When he returned he spent hours talking from people around the world. People would go there just to answer it and talk to people around the world. Sadly the park association took the phone box as it was disturbing the wildlife. Even good things must end.
That's a beautiful story.
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All they had to do is turn down the ringer on it. You said booth, so I assume the talking was muffled if the door was closed.
All the glass was broken.
I love this - thank you
Thank you for this message, John. There's something special and safe about keeping something you love to yourself, whether that be a tree, or a RUclipsr, or a band, or anything at all. And there's vulnerability and a fear of loss and so much else when you begin to share that with others, too. But sometimes, you need to reflect and allow the things you love to grow out of your own hands and into the world. And it's worth it because it will make others love, and feel safe, and happy.
There's always the potential for loss, or death, or whatever else it may be. But that shouldn't make us stop caring or loving or sharing. A momentary happiness is better than no happiness at all.
That pun "un-saw," it provided a bit of comedic relief but I still feel somewhat angered. But the fact that the Broccoli Tree was known and cherished by many, it feels heartwarming :)