Tree

The tree is a common thing, a safe thing, a friendly and giving thing. A tree is a plant with a strong, thick trunk instead of a stem like on a daisy. The stem of a tree is called a trunk and it has an outer coat that is thick and hard, called a trunk. The outer coat is called bark and it protects the inner part that carries the sap which is the life blood of the tree. It takes a saw or axe to cut through a tree trunk.

There are so many ways that the symbol of ‘tree’ is used. Trees tend to be long-lived, some reaching several thousand years old. The tallest known tree, a coast redwood named Hyperion, stands 115.6 m (379 ft) high. Trees have been in existence for 370 million years. It is estimated that there are just over 3 trillion mature trees in the world. The tree is thought to have evolved from the fern
The first tree to have evolved from the fern is the yew. Yew trees live for thousands of years. Their branches reach out quite  distance and the weight of those branches causes the tips to touch the ground far from the main trunk. Here it is, those branches establish themselves as new yew trees. They are magnificent to look at and a rare treat to walk under. There is a 500 year old yew in Japan called #1 that is considered sacred.

The idea of a tree is used in many different situations. For instance, a dialogue tree would show the interconnectedness of the parts of a conversation, From there we can refer to branches and leaves and of course the foundation of the tree trunk. A tree is any structure with nodes and branches interconnected to make the whole. A data tree might be used to analyze data collected to show the relationships of evidence in solving a crime.

The Tree of Life is a symbol from ancient times. The roots establish life, the trunk holds it, the branches extend it and the leaves bring sustenance. The fruit of the tree gives of itself and is the expression of the meaning of life itself. We can look at ourselves using these elements of the tree and ask, “what is the fruit I am meant to give freely?” Kind of deep. Kind of personal. Kind of a question worth asking. What is your answer?