"tree trek: A Daughter' Walk through grief"

Nature invites each of us to immerse ourselves outdoors. In the process of that connection, we receive many benefits whether it is listening to our own inner guidance, achieving growth through the personal challenges nature can offer, healing through nature, or simply finding a sense of calm. What better way to begin than to take a forest walk and learn about trees! This memoir does just that as Mirocha leads the reader chapter by chapter in a continuous narrative through the trees. Each chapter is titled with a tree genus in which Mirocha weaves her personal story of the enduring love she carries after the loss of her father, with the universal connection we all have with science, trees, and the vital importance of nature in our lives. 

"Tree Trek" is an actual annual event in a city park near Mirocha’s childhood home, guiding visitors wishing to learn more about various tree species there. The event was initiated years earlier by her father after his retirement as a professor. A visual artist by career, she had enjoyed a lifetime of engaging with nature but lacked the deeper scientific knowledge of botany that began to pull her a few years before her dad passed in 2019, and which inspired her to train as a MN Master Naturalist in 2020. As Mirocha revives the languishing Tree Trek event, she soon discovers how much this event and its projects are tied to her grief process. 

This inspiring memoir beautifully reveals the intersection of art and science. Alongside the grief story trees helped her tell, Mirocha’s warm and joyful writing style offers a fascinating treasure trove of learning about trees. The science aspect of the book delves deeply into botany, tree ID and the natural history of trees in North America, which readers can take with them to enrich their future outdoor experiences. 

EVENTS and Presentations

INSIDE STORIES ABOUT THIS BOOK

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 "It is a rare pleasure to go for a walk among the trees with someone who clearly knows and loves them as much as I do. There is a wealth of scientific and botanical knowledge here (Linnaeus would be proud!) but much more than that, we find also a true depth of feeling and understanding. 'Each tree,' writes Stephanie Mirocha, 'is a world unto itself.' And so it is. But there is a dimension--a near mystical connection, perhaps--where the world of the tree touches and reflects the inner world of the human being. Someone who is hurting, perhaps. In need of guidance. Of comfort or inspiration. It is of that world--that connection--that Stephanie writes so beautifully. She says that in getting to know the trees, she has also found herself. I suspect that may be the case for any reader who treks among the trees with her."

--Douglas Wood, author of Old Turtle, Deep Woods, Wild Waters, and A Wild Path 

"Tree Trek is an intensely personal story of one woman’s exploration of trees and family grief. Tapping into a lifetime of experience with nature, Ms. Mirocha successfully blends scientific knowledge with personal discovery. Through her narrative the healing power of trees is revealed. We learn that trees are good listeners, but they don’t say much. Using an engaging writing style, Ms. Mirocha speaks for the trees and for all of us who have dealt with grief."

—Welby Smith, author of Trees and Shrubs of Minnesota

"For all of us who long to be reminded of the power of nature to heal, Stephanie Mirocha’s poignant memoir is a welcome blessing. More than simply a soothing walk in a park, more than an affectionate, enlightening meditation on the nature and character of Earth’s most enduring plants, more than a master naturalist’s journey through grief, Tree Trek is a touching, tender testament to the everlasting love between a father and daughter. I heartily recommend this beautiful book to all of us who seek to be moved by an inspiring story of familial love and to all of us who seek restoration in nature."

—Andrea Gilats, author of After Effects: A Memoir of Complicated Grief  and Radical Endurance: Growing Old in an Age of Longevity