Is This A Good Idear?

hansvanmeer

Hi everybody,
Last weekend when i was walking along the costline, dowing some soulsearching in the last warmth off the fast sinking sun.
It maked me feel real good and i realiced how lucky i was to see this spectical!
And then a idear i had before some 15 years ago, poped again in to my mind!
Only now it is there to stay, and to act upon!
This idear is not my own, but comes from something i ones read in a German article.
Well here it is: We all injoy our bonsai, and try to shape them in a way we enjoy them, keeping in close mind what we can see and like in big trees in nature! But what if you are blind your whole live! I think you dont realy can have a real good idear off what a big tree look likes!
I know that when you are missing your eyeside, your other sences; like touch develops greatly, but you can only feel things as much as you can stredge your arms!
So is it not a great idear maybe for the blind to feel what a big tree feels/look like?
We could bring our specialy selected bonsai to them and let them feel , the roots, were the roots go over in to the tree, feel along the bark upp to the branches, along the branches and back to the trunk to the next branch, realising that there is open space in between the branches, feeling that branches become shorter higher up the tree, feeling a crown of a tree ect ect.
We could let them feel the differance in the way a Spruce or a Oak grows and looks!
The way the branches grow on differend species, and the differance in bark!
I could go on and on. (i get exsided allover again writhing this!)
The differance in foliage, maybe bringing along real sized leaves, needles and Pine -cones ect. so they could compare them with the bonsai we brought along of the same species .
We could let them feel a hole forrest if we like, because we gould bring forrest to them and let there hands walk trough it!
I actualy believe we can give them a impresion how high a tree can be and looks like outside off there own reach?
To any of you reading this,that may have any experience with this idear?
Is there maybe someone who knows a blind person to ask if this would be a good idear?
Is there any body out there ho knows who i could contact, within my aria to propose this idear to, who maybe works with blind people?
And i realy would like to know if this is allready been don, so i can learn from your experiance!
And i would like to know; what you all think about this, and if you have any idear to make this possibal?
I have a good feeling about this, i think we can put our bonsai to good use this way?
Dont you?
Regards,
Hans van Meer.

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Bruce Winter

Hans..................this is a beautiful idea! My first thought was of Morea, a very compassionate soul.
Do you know her? She's in Gennep. I can PM her email if you want. And I will think about doing this here.

pootsie

That sounds like a wonderful idea!

pootsie

__________________
p.s. My cat is a bonsaiTALK Master.
Columbus Bonsai Society

hansvanmeer

Hi Bruce,
Yes do you realy think so? I am sorry to say i never heard off her?
Do you meen Gennep in Holland? If so; if she can help me in any way whit this plan than; yes please PM me!

PS.
This is a other thing i just realist, the diverance between the winter and summer look of deciduous trees is allso possibal to feel!
Thank for your help Bruce,
Hans.

TonyTickle

Hi Hans,

I think this a great Idea, I have a friend who has a Child who is Blind and they have brought her to my garden, she found it fasinating... so did I.

Tony

__________________
Who ever said the world was flat was right!

Tony

zen

Great idea, great heart, I wish you the absolute best of luck with this, wish I could help in some way. Love and trees ,...and friends.

__________________
"Although profoundly "inconsequential," the Zen experience has consequences in the sense that it may be applied in any direction, to any conceivable human activity, and that wherever it is so applied it lends an unmistakable quality to the work."

~ Alan Watts (1915-1973)

PatArizona

OUTSTANDING IDEA Hans!

Pat

__________________
BONSAI isn't about surviving in a storm, rather, how to dance in the rain.
THE ONLY WAY: Always remember, and don't ever forget, that whatever you read here is not cast in concrete... the intent of any advice is to help. In no way should you feel that I’m saying that my way is the only way…heaven forbid! I've seen far too much of the "my way or the highway" attitude in bonsai as well as in other areas of life.

morea

Dear

Hans ,
Outstanding idea !!!
Yes , we have a lot of possibilities ,
I "m touched and write you !!

Bruce ,
BIG KISS

Kind regards
Morea

hansvanmeer

Hi Morea,

Great news!
Looking forward to it!
Geweldig nieuws,
Hans.