Yesterday was Shel Silverstein's birthday. I saw someone post about it on Facebook and my mind immediately jumped to The Giving Tree. It was a childhood favorite, and it is something of an anthem for garden designers.
I had a quick horticultural thought about what (exactly) type of tree was in the story...it was a nondescript apple tree...and then I launched into thoughts about how much this book played a part in my chosen profession and design sensibility. While I always found the book to be sad (even though the tree is supposedly happy to provide the old man a place to sit) I latched onto the idea that we can partner with trees and nature and that everyone (people and nature) can benefit from it.
I have also found design inspiration in the story. One of the most satisfying things I have done as a designer was to help a good friend (and client) choose three trees to plant in her garden - one for each of her children. At the time, they were all under 4 (2 boys and a girl) and we choose a Serviceberry, a Crabapple and a Magnolia (in order to protect the innocent, I won't explain why we choose what we did). But our idea was to give these trees to the children and help them to know that the tree was chosen just for them and why. I didn't exactly think about it at the time, but what we were trying to give each of them was their very own Giving Tree.
I have always meant to get around to similarly choosing and planting trees for my own children and as I note Shel's birthday (and it is a perfect time of year for planting trees), this has me thinking...I need to get on that before they are all grown up.
I'm using some websites to help me choose trees that suit their personalities, my hopes for them, and their dreams for themselves. Have you ever planted a tree for a child? Wouldn't it be a lovely gift for a baby to not only plant a tree, but to give them a copy of the The Giving Tree?
Here are some of the web resources I am letting wash over me as I contemplate tree choices.
- A site that has a variety of tree meanings.
- A site full of legends about trees.
- A fun site about Mythical forests.
- Based on Celtic Astrology - find what tree you "fell from".
- Take this quiz to find out your tree archetype (I was a birch -- what are you?)
I'm curious, have you planted trees for children or babies and if so, what did you plant and why?
(Image: composite of book cover and Shutterstock)
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The Giving Tree is a lesson about selfishness. The mastery in the storytelling is that Shel Silverstein is able to help us recognize our own acts of selfishness and experience an object lesson about the loneliness that comes from living a selfish existence.
If you really want to put the story to work, plant a fruit bearing tree and harvest the fruit and share it family and friends. Teach children to share the shade, or share a book, or share a game under the tree. And in turn, nurture the tree: fruit trees need irrigation, suckers removed, and regular soil amendment for strong growth and a good harvest. Teach kids that if you Give to the tree, it Gives back, and the lesson will extend to people, pets, communities, etc.
My parents planted a tree for me when I was a toddler. The sapling came from my grandparents yard and it turned out not to be a red oak, but instead a huckleberry. This happy accident means that I have a unique tree that exists nowhere else in their yard (an important aspect to keep in mind when selecting a tree for this purpose). The small sturdy tree makes for great climbing for neighborhood kids, the abundant berries attract tons of greedy little birds, and shapely leaves are lovely in the fall. I love all these things about this tree, and remember my grandparents whenever I visit my parents home and the tree named after me.
Great notion. I'd choose trees that are useful as well as beautiful, like apple or pear trees. That way each year the child would get to help tend his own tree and see how the blossoms bear fruit. It's a beautiful metaphor for life.
My parents planted a tree for me when I was born with the placenta (yeah, they were hippies). It was outside my bedroom window growing up. Not sure what kind it was, but it had big purple flowers. Coincidentally, purple became my favorite color. Years after I moved out the tree got a fungus and died, but every time I see one of those trees I remember home.
As soon as we're not renting I definitely want to plant a tree for little one.
Second City's funny take on the giving tree:
http://youtu.be/XYQavD9mSIc