Norton Nearly talks to trees. And sometimes they talk back.

Some conversations have occurred in the oval-shaped grove that he and his wife, Kimberly, planted at the back of their split level in Townsend, on a quiet acre where they have lived since 1988. Others have been with a 350-year-old white oak at St. Anne’s cemetery in Middletown.

Some of his formative memories involve “whittling a stick into oblivion.” One of his four books is “The Tree Mend Us Path,” an essay collection that covers “a lot of time with trees” and meditation that helped him heal from a brain tumor. A current hobby is crafting what he calls “forest art,” including walking sticks, staffs, wands, wood spirits, doors, fairy homes, amulets, talismans, games and incense burner, made of wood, other natural materials and vintage accoutrements that he adds.

Nearly’s name is an homage to his grandmothers, whose maiden names were Norton and Nierle. He was 24 when he started to use this pseudonym to disassociate his creative endeavors and his sylvan spirit from the corporate careers that paid the bills.

“He is a man of the trees, having wandered the woods for over 50 years,” he writes on NortonNearly.com. “Each piece of wood has its own personality, meaning, properties and uses that want to be released. Each wood has specific properties and esoteric uses. Norton leverages this in his creations.”

He expounded on those ideas in an interview. “When I create things, I’m not like a lot of artists who say ‘I’m going to do a painting of this.’ I don’t think that way. The stick and I work together in the creation. I try to get a feeling of what is right to do with it, and not just what I want to do with it.”

Ancestry and curiosity

He grew up near Scranton, Pennsylvania. “My life has not been easy, to be truthful,” he said, citing Perthes’ disease (a rare condition that “prohibited me from doing anything but lying on my stomach or back for about two years”), the death of his mother when he was 15, addiction when he was younger and “a lot of residual pain that I try to suppress.”

He has already planned his death: cremation (no desire to “waste more land on my lifeless body”); a celebration of life to provide closure for his wife and daughter, Katie; and ascension to heaven, which he hopes is a “place of ultimate peace.”

He was brought up Roman Catholic and attended Jesuit schools. He has attended Methodist services (his wife’s faith) and Baptist services and read up on Buddhism and Hinduism. “I don’t know what I am now. I hold onto a lot of my Christian beliefs, and if someone asked me what religion I am, I would say Christo-Druidic, which is sort of my own made-up religion. I guess I like to pray in the trees.”

His father moved to Delaware for work, and he followed when he was hired as a warehouse supervisor in the same firm. Later jobs included working as a mail carrier and at a truck-driving school and publishing a magazine focused on the outdoors, but most of his career (28 years) was in banking.

His current business cards list forest artist, poet, adventurer, Order of Bards Ovates & Druids bard, storyteller, naturalist, Celtic/Norse mythology and spirituality.

In his free time, he explores the great outdoors (camping in “remote forests and deep hollows,” backpacking, kayaking, rafting and biking), and he explores the inside story of his heritage.

Forest art and the trees

“Norton comes from a creative family whose heritage is steeped in Celtic, Germanic and Norse traditions,” he writes. His paternal ancestors were ship carvers and storytellers from County Sligo, Ireland. His maternal ancestors were explorers and wanderers, with at least one wood carver and furniture maker. They settled in Germany’s Black Forest, home to many of the Brothers Grimm tales as well as elves, dwarves and witches.

That ancestry led him to study Celtic, Germanic and Norse mythology, spirituality, symbology and writing systems. “It all started to gel,” he said. “Everything I was interested in – the Irish history, the nature aspects, the walking sticks – all started to come together. I got very excited because it was like it was meant to be.” The result: items “made more seriously and reverently, using ancient symbols.”

Nearly likes so many trees, and his favorites are oak and sassafras.

Oak is known for its strong wood and acorns that nurture so many creatures, including humans. “It’s the primary tree for Druids, and they saw it as the father of the trees,” he said.

Sassafras is known for its tea and how it sports three types of leaves. “The number three is very magical and very important in Celtic mythology and is probably the most important number across all spiritualities, including Christianity, with the trinity,” he said. “And the wood is beautiful. If you get a really good piece, the under-bark is a brilliant red, and it makes a heck of a wand or walking stick.”

He started with walking sticks and branched out to wands, at the suggestion of his wife. The wands were first for children but evolved into spiritual versions with his greater grasp of faith.

Much of the wood is sourced locally “in an environmentally friendly manner, from downed trees, struggling trees, pruning, thinning and deadfall,” he writes. “Nature is Norton’s church, so he strives to do no harm to the natural world in the acquisition of materials.”

Why? What?

He offered this example: “There’s an old tree that’s been down near Townsend, on the ground ever since I met it, and that’s probably 10 years ago. I always do this sort of thing: ‘Are you OK if I take a piece of your wood for my creative purposes?’ I get a feeling in my head, and I seldom get a ‘no,’ but with this particular tree, I always get a feeling that it doesn’t want me to take any of it.”

When he takes the wood, he likes to symbolically leave something, like a pebble or a penny, that says “thank you for providing.”

“We’ve both long had a love of being out in the trees, and we made sure our daughter did, too,” Kimberly said, adding that she now enjoys “the thrill of stick-hunting” when accompanying Norton on trips to gather raw material. Their home features a lot of wood, including antique chairs and his creations. “It fits with his personality, and we feel the energy,” she said

Nearly sells his wares at various fairs and festivals, including the Delaware Renaissance Faire in Townsend, and all year at Purple Sage in Middletown and Find Your Harmony near Newark.

“I have purchased a walking stick, and I have several of his wands, tree spirits, pendants,” said Teri Jannuzzio, owner of Find Your Harmony. “Just like crystals, wood has amazing energies! Some of his creations were bought because of their beauty, others because of their energy.”

“Norton seeks the answer to the simple question, ‘Why,’ he writes. “Why is all this swirling around us, and where do we fit into it? We have many names for where answers may be found – God, goddess, spirit, energy, source, creator, guide and others. Norton sees a connection in everything with humans deeply a part of it all. Nature and our beloved trees are critical aspects of this oneness.”

When asked what he thinks the answer is to “Why,” he responded: “I think the first answer is ‘what.’ What I believe with that is that we are all connected, everything from the trees, the rocks, the people. What’s important to me is that connection. … The ‘why’ is a tougher question. I don’t know exactly why we’re here, but hopefully it’s to help others. But that seems like a second step. So I’m still seeking the ‘why.’”