The two trees of my logo have meaning for me both in the natural and in the spiritual realms.  In the initial stages of trying to design a logo for my counseling practice, I had in mind symbols which might represent both recovery from addiction and also living victoriously in Christ.

As I experimented with different symbols, I became clear that I also wanted to represent the city of Ventura, where I practice and where I was born and raised.  I considered the ocean, the islands and the pier, but settled on Two Trees, on the hilltop overlooking Ventura.

History

I am old enough to recall when there were five trees on that hilltop, originally used by merchant seamen as a sighting point to guide them to the Ventura pier to unload their goods.  Today there are only two trees on that hilltop.  As best I recall, and there seems to be some discrepancy about what happened, three of the trees were either burned or cut down on Halloween night, 1958.  Two Trees, as that hilltop has since been known, continues to watch over Ventura. 

The Spiritual and the Natural

In the natural, Two Trees is a symbol that represents the city of Ventura, a city I love, my birthplace, and the city where I am blessed to work.

In the spiritual, I believe the two trees represent the two trees in the Garden of Eden – the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and the Tree of Life.  These two trees represent our ongoing struggle between our natural tendency to be self-reliant, dependent on our own knowledge, skills and experience – the Tree of Knowledge – and our need to focus on the One who is the source of life, Jesus – represented by the Tree of Life.

Good Fruit and Bad Fruit

The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil produces bad fruit: self-contentedness, vanity, selfish ambition, jealousy, discouragement, doubt, defeat and death.

The Tree of Life produces good fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  These are the fruit of the Spirit.

I think Two Trees is a fitting symbol for my logo, representing the struggles we all face, whether addiction v. recovery, strength v. surrender, or good v. evil.  Those two trees continue to be a sighting point used for guidance.  We continue to have a choice of which fruit we will eat.  And our choice makes all the difference.