We use the expression “not seeing the forests for the trees'' when someone is so focused on the details of a problem they can’t see the big picture. But today we see the trees AND the forest and we celebrate them.

Anyone who goes outside for a walk can’t help but notice the trees. Even in a dense city like New York where trees aren’t particularly plentiful your eyes are naturally drawn up to the trees. 

We love trees for their beautiful blooms, cool shade, fruit and flowers, pine cones and nuts. It gives us joy to hear birds sing in their branches and woodpeckers play the clave on the bark. Franklin D. Roosevelt said forests were “the lungs of our land, purifying the air and giving fresh strength to our people.” Years before, his distant cousin, Teddy Roosevelt, who was a dedicated conservationist, reserved around 200 million acres for national forests and refuges. 

In 2012, the United Nations declared March 21st the International Day of Forests to raise awareness of the importance of forests and the necessity of preserving them. It’s a global celebration of this natural resource that nurtures the soil, traps carbon dioxide and provides sustenance and habitats to millions of species around the world. Forests also provide raw materials such as paper. 

It was paper that prompted us to start Rapt. For decades we had been wrapping our gifts in wrapping paper. One day we woke up and realized what a waste of paper it was. So we created a better solution, replacing single-use wrapping paper with reusable fabric gift wrap that can be used over and over and doesn’t get thrown away. Teddy Roosevelt had it right when he said, "I recognize the right and duty of this generation to develop and use the natural resources of our land; but I do not recognize the right to waste them, or to rob, by wasteful use, the generations that come after us." 

In honor of this day, make the eco switch from paper to Rapt reusable fabric gift wrap. You could also pot a plant, plant a tree, walk in the woods or just step outside and spend a minute appreciating the trees, one of our greatest natural resources.