bonsai world wide hobby

i just thought i,d say what a pleasure it is to see people from all around the world communicating on this site , it just proves what a truly international hobby this is . i know that everybody that dont do bonsai think we are a little crazy playing with small trees, but what other hobby gives you the pleasure that bonsai does? the thrill of finding an amazing piece of yamadori, the buzz when it lives, the fun of styling it either with friends or teachers , getting just the right pot ,the years of developing the tree and finally showing your trees and seeing old friends at the shows from all around the world .what other hobby blends art and nature so completely and brings people from different cultures together , or am i just nuts regards to everybody john

That's why I'm "hooked"! The extra bonus to collecting is being in the wilds to see the special sights that our Mother Earth has to offer. I can't imagine, now, not ever growing bonsai. Salut, Todd

Bonsai is a fantastic hobby. As you said it blends art and nature. Todd makes a good point about being out in the wild collect and how enjoyable that it is, but it also enables me to see even more beauty in majestic old growth trees and more in tune with the changes that each season brings. I am constantly inspecting trees as they grow and have an ever growing understanding of the differences between each species. More than a few people think I am crazy due to this hobby, but they will never understand the idea of living art that you are only manipulating and not creating, the creation comes from the tree. It for me is more than a hobby but an obsession/addiction. I can't walk past a tree without admiring the trunk and branch structure, looking at how it is budding, or inspecting the leaves.

Todd

Ditto!!!

Bonsai is Borderless not just international.....
There are no language barriers that we can not remove with a Wee tree
Irene

It's the same for me but my bonsai's gives me peace, it's a sanctuary where I go and sit and relax thinking about the days past. A place where just for one moment I can have time for myself. This is a hobby that is slow to gratify and a lifetime to achieve and people can't understand the concept. Also, this hobby teaches you "Patience". We live in a fly-by-night and "give it to me now" kinda world. Only a few lucky souls can understand "and" appreciate what this hobby has to offer. Maybe that's why a lot of people from around the world enjoy bonsai. It gives you a chance to stop and think about something other then ourselves.

A Hui Hou,
-Tim

There are 125 people on the BCI trip to China in late September and early October. The nations represented are Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Czech Republic, Denmark, Italy, USA, Slovakia, Spain, Canada, United Kingdom, South Africa, Singapore, Taiwan, Japan and Holland. (Puerto Rico is listed by the organizers as a country, but is really part of the USA.) I would say this is international.

Wow! Quite a cosmopolitan group, Billy. Have a great time!

We were seriously considering joining you, but we check with my pulmonoligist before we travel these days and he told me that, with my lungs, China's air quality would kill me. I love bonsai, but that's a bit much.

He said Hong Kong was probably OK, and I've wanted to go back there, so maybe . . .

Jim, do you know there will be another trip in 2013?

I love seeing the native species that come with the international crowd of bonsai people. Seeing these and the terrain they come from provides insight into how different species cope with the conditions and also gives idea on how to manipulate and style the species that are available in your area.

Tim,
I also use the hobby for relaxation, almost everyday when I get home from work I inspect and stare at my trees. There is a joy that comes from seeing a bud break and grow in just at or very near where you were hoping it would. Its like some greater force is working with you, and when you screw something up that force is teaching you a lesson. Usually the lesson has to do with patience.

Todd

DreadyKGB wrote:

Tim,
I also use the hobby for relaxation, almost everyday when I get home from work I inspect and stare at my trees. There is a joy that comes from seeing a bud break and grow in just at or very near where you were hoping it would. Its like some greater force is working with you, and when you screw something up that force is teaching you a lesson. Usually the lesson has to do with patience.

Todd

Very good grasshopper, You have come to a place of enlightenment. May your knowledge and wisdom grow as large as the tallest trees.

A Hui Hou,
-Tim

Billy M. Rhodes wrote:Jim, do you know there will be another trip in 2013?

I doubt their air quality will be any better then, Billy. Guess I'll have to miss seeing any more of China than I've already seen.

Just today I was imagining a little bitty tree house in a little chinese elm tree on my bench. And got to wondering how it would be to climb up there and look around.....

Libby

bumblebee wrote:Just today I was imagining a little bitty tree house in a little chinese elm tree on my bench. And got to wondering how it would be to climb up there and look around.....

Libby

Grasshopper...... you must stop eating mushrooms on your daily walk...

A Hui Hou,
-Tim