![dek](https://content.time.com/time/2012/influentialplaces/sequoia.jpg)
Giant Sequoia trees in snow and fog in Sequoia National Park, Calif.
The ability of the sequoias to survive and grow for 3,000 years is a testament to nature's ability to conjure up ever more creative and elegant ways to embody resiliency in the face of lifelong adversity.
Volkow is a public-health physician