Ever Heard of a Witting Tree Service?

What’s a “Witting Tree” service?

Indeed, what does the word “witting” mean?

You’ve heard the phrase, “keep your wits about you.”  There’s that word, “wit.”  It’s an old word, archaic.  As a noun it means mind, memory, or senses.  Hence, to tell you to “keep your wits about you” is to tell you to stay alert and use your mind, or more to the point, to keep your sanity.  As a verb it means to know or to come to know or learn.  Look it up in the dictionary.  I found it in Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 11th edition.

Thus, a “Witting Tree Ceremony” is a service of awareness, to make something known, to awaken one’s attention to a certain truth or reality. 

Did you know that this country loses 18-22 veterans a day—by means of suicide?  Now, keep your wits about you and realize that these are veterans killing themselves—AFTER coming home safely from serving combat duty overseas.  What’s happening?

Everyone hears about those killed in action.  And we are aware of injured veterans who have lost an arm or leg or eye or hand or something.  But we seldom think of the internal harm, the unseen damage that is done to the soul and spirit of a returned seasoned veteran who is otherwise physically unscathed.  And then, BAM!  We’re taken by surprise and don’t understand why he (mostly men) should take his own life—especially after surviving a tour of duty, having faced live combat action and managed to return home physically unharmed.

Why?  We ask.  We wonder.  We ponder.  For, we are completely puzzled by this.  And it seems as if the military does a good job of avoiding the subject, seemingly keeping quiet about the impact of veteran suicides before the public.

Hence, we have the “Witting Tree Ceremony.”

So, for example, our particular church, Wellspring Church of Skippack, will be having a Witting Tree Service on Sunday, 8 November, in honor of and with respect to Veterans Day of 11 November.

Dog Tags are used to identify servicemen/women who may be killed in action.  What we will be doing is hanging symbolic “dog tags” on one of our trees outside our church (near the cemetery) in recognition of those veterans who have died by taking their own lives—22 dog tags will be hung.  The number 22 being the average number per day that a veteran takes his/her own life.

Our Sunday morning service inside the church will lead up to this symbolic gesture (all are welcome to come and participate).  The particular tree that we will be using is one that was planted in memoriam of a son of one of our own members that died while serving in the Marines—Adam Conboy.

What it’s about is bringing awareness to the many deaths of our servicemen and women that happen after they’ve safely returned home.  It is a way for us to become more conscious of the fact that when veterans return home, for many, the war has not necessarily ended.  They bring the war home with them.  It stays in their head and lives in their guts.  They may be tormented, wounded or badly injured internally—mind, heart, soul, and spirit.  We civilians need to understand this and become more sensitive to this reality.

So, how do you plan to recognize Veterans Day this year?  You are most welcome to join us for our Witting Tree Ceremony on Sunday, 8 November, 2015.  Service starts at 10:00 a.m.: Wellspring Church of Skippack, 1183 Cressman Rd, Skippack PA.  610-489-2688.