Tree & Me: Keeping Watch
A Story by Charleen of Darien, IL
Tree & Me is a storytelling series from Leaf & Limb. In each issue, we feature a personal story about trees from one of our readers. This month, our story was written by Charleen of Darien, IL.
Keeping Watch
One day, my eldest son came home from preschool with a stick. He held it out and proclaimed it was a tree. All the toddlers had received one from their teacher. I don’t recall this stick being labeled or identified. I do remember being promised it was a fast grower. He told me, with a serious demeanor, that it needed to be planted where he could watch it grow.
We had recently moved into our new house, and it desperately needed some shade over the deck where we sat to enjoy the outdoors. The little stick was duly planted, and he kept watch over the tree both in the sizzling summers and during the cold, snowy winters.
He never said much about the tree as they both grew up, but one day, about 40 years later, he came to me and showed me his new tattoo, the leaf of an oak tree. Not a generic one, but an exact replica of a leaf from his tree. All those years, he’d been paying close attention.
Our little stick is now a 50-foot bur oak tree. My son has long since moved away and carried on with his life, but the tree is here, still growing.
He planted it so he could watch it grow. All these years later, I am the one watching, and in the dappled shadows that now shade our deck, I can still see the smile of that proud three-year-old.
Have your own tree story?
Do you have a tree that holds a special place in your heart? Maybe it’s a childhood climbing tree, a backyard favorite, or one you planted in memory of someone you love.
Please share your story with us to celebrate the powerful connection between people and trees. You can do so by filling out the form below. Each month, we will select a new story to be featured in this “Tree & Me” series.
