A Tree for Every Grandchild

When my first grandchild was born, I planted a maple in our backyard and put a little wooden sign beside it with her name. Now I have seven grandchildren and seven trees.

Each tree is different. A maple for Emma, an oak for Jacob, a cherry for Sofia, a pine for Leo, a birch for Maya, a dogwood for Sam, and, this spring, a tiny apple tree for baby Nora.

Whenever the grandkids visit, the first thing they do is run to their trees and measure themselves against them. Emma, now twelve, is still taller than her maple, but not by much. Jacob likes to sit under his oak and read. Sofia waits all year for the cherry blossoms.

Someday, I hope, they'll bring their own children to sit under these trees. I won't be here to see it. But I like knowing they'll stand in my yard, under branches I planted, and remember a grandmother who loved them very much.