When I was growing up in Philadelphia, there was a sycamore tree in our backyard. My mom and I would sit out on the back steps to enjoy the shade and comfort of that big huge tree whose branches extended over the yards of the neighbors to either side of us.
She would often sing to me when we sat together. And one of her favorite songs was one written by Joyce Kilmer – an ode to trees. “I think that I shall never see a poem as lovely as a tree, a tree whose hungry mouth is prest against the earth’s sweet flowing breast . . .” You can read the full poem here.
My mom taught me to love trees, to see them as divine, to protect them and to be comforted by them. To this day, long after my mother has passed, my spirit and soul feels nourished, cared for and replenished when I am in the presence of trees.
