I am sitting on this park bench facing the pond at the Square des Batignolles. I imagine myself as a tree wrapping its roots around the legs of this bench. The roots circle the base of the bench and fan out towards the edge of the pond in the center. The wind whips the strands of hair on my head in the way that leaves sway on a branch. I’d like to imagine the knots that get tangled in the wind reflect the shapes of blooming flowers. I wonder what it feels like to be a tree when people pull on the leaves and branches or to have people lay around the trunk.

In terms of water, tap water in the Paris metropolitan area is primarily collected from groundwater and river water from major streams such as the Seine. A process of reverse osmosis is used to pressurize the contaminants out of the drinkable water. In Paris in particular, it’s common to drink plastic bottled water from leading brands such as evian. I’ve noticed that it’s difficult to find refillable water stations in academic buildings or general areas of social settings. In the context of the park, it was difficult to find a tap water station.