The Tree of Lives

A white oak tree sat in Phelps Grove Park In Springfield, Missouri. White oaks grow best in Missouri, but this particular tree would grow best to play an important role in many individual’s lives. 

Liam was 12 when his father broke his pinky promise. Every day after school Liam would rush to the park to climb his favorite tree. He would sit on the highest branch to see all the other beautiful trees, flowers, and animals in the park. 

Liam dreamt of having his own treehouse built right into his tree and live there until he is too old to recite the alphabet. His father would watch him play in the tree and listen to Liam go on and on about how he wants his treehouse to look and where he would put his tv. Liam’s father pinky promised that he would build him a treehouse in his tree so he can live there until he grows old. 

The tumor in his father’s head didn’t agree with this promise. Liam’s father had died before he could even get the materials needed to make a treehouse. Liam was so young that he could barely process what had happened. All he could do was run. He ran to the park faster than the hot tears racing down his cheeks. Once he made it to his tree he collapsed on his knees. He buried his face in his hands like he was possibly going to lose himself. 

When he finally calmed down he ran his fingers across his tree’s trunk. There was a letter B carved into his tree. He had a look of confusion on his face. “Best boy” He whispered to himself. His father used to call him that. A wave of emotion went through him as he realized that his tree was now his father’s tree. 

Lucinda couldn’t wait to be a mother. “Hazel? Eleanor? Clara?” She listed. “Hugh? Phineas? Or maybe Rupert?” She continued. She still couldn’t pick a name she was just happy that she was finally pregnant. She wasn’t really showing yet, but the ultrasound shows that her baby was the size of a bell pepper now. She was so excited that she would go to the store and just buy hundreds of baby clothes and toys for her little bell pepper. 

Lucinda was so ready to take the title of being a mom that all she would do is rub her belly and talk to her baby. She hopes it’s a girl so she can teach her ballet and go to all of her concerts. She didn’t really care what gender her baby was, she just wanted to meet them already.                                                                                                                                         

Most days she would walk to Phelps Grove Park to sit under this huge white oak tree. The ginormous root coming from the tree made a perfect seat for her and her baby. She would read to her baby under the tree in hopes that they would listen. She would read books from Dr. Seuss to the Hunger games series. 

Days later, Lucinda had horrible stomach pains, not like the ones where she could just soothe the pain with some ice cream, but the pains of her baby, dying. Lucinda was devasted. She began to feel pain she had never experienced before. The pain of losing a child. 

Lucinda went back to the tree and just sat. She couldn’t cry. She wanted to, but she had none left in her. She felt completely drained and robbed of her joy. She took a good look at the tree and saw the letter B carved in the tree. “Beautiful child,” she said softly. “Beautiful child,” she said again. “My beautiful child” she screamed with her arms out. Lucinda realized that when she was reading the books under the tree to her baby, the tree was also listening. Her beautiful child was listening, she was a mother. 

Abel always felt like he was in a story. Not like the stories where a kid goes on adventures and is told they’re special. Abel wishes that he could be that kid in one of those stories, but he is stuck in a different story. A horror story. 

Sometimes it was on his chest. Sometimes on his face. If he was lucky, all he would get was a slap on his face, but he wasn’t very lucky. His father had anger issues and took it all out on his son. The thought of his father felt like a battle to Abel. A battle that he couldn’t fight. The only amour he had was his heart. Ice packs would take his black eye and bruises away but there was only one thing that would make his pain bearable. 

His tree in the park. His safe haven. Sitting under that tree made all his bruises and nosebleeds melt off him like butter. He would close his eyes and pretend he was an explorer in the rainforest looking for an endangered species. 

When his father passed, he felt angry. He always thought that when his father passed he would be happy and live the story that he wanted, but he was angry. He was angry about how he planned to be happy once his father was gone. No kid should go through so much that they simile when thinking about their parent’s death. 

He felt like no one was there for him except his tree. He looked at his tree and saw the letter B carved into it. “Bastard son,” his father’s voice said. His father used to call him that when he used to cry. Abel started to punch the tree until his knuckles started to leak red. There was some on the tree. He had seen many colors on the tree through the years but he has never seen red. It looked unnatural and felt illegal to him. For the first time in his life, the tree looked different. It looked like it was filled with rage and was ready to give Abel a new bruise. Abel no longer saw the tree as his tree but as his father. He knew what he had to do. He had to chop it down. 

The school bell rang. Liam bolted out of his classroom and ran all the way to the park without stopping. 

Lucinda starts walking to the tree with a childrens’ book in hand. 

Abel, with an ax, is in the park ready to change his story and finally be free. 

As they all stood before the tree, they looked at each other with confusion. 

“This tree is my child and I am going to read this book to them, so can we have some privacy?” Lucinda asked the two boys. 

“No, this tree is my dreadful father and I have come to chop him down!” Declared Abel. 

“No! No! Please don’t cut my father’s tree down!” Screamed Liam with tears in his eyes. 

As they all began to argue about who the tree belonged to, an old lady with a purple coat and white gloves approached them. 

“This tree… this tree is my husband’s tree.”

They all gasped. 

“How is this even your husband’s tree?” Demanded Abel

“Yeah!” Said, Liam

“Well, I buried my husband under this tree.” She said. 

“There’s even the letter b I carved into the tree for him.”

“You did that?” Lucinda asked. 

“Yes, I did, my husband’s name was Bradley.” The lady said 

“Wow,” Lucinda said with a sigh, “ I really thought this was my child’s tree”

For a moment there was silence. 

“I see how much you guys have connected with my husband’s tree, he was always a good listener.” The lady said, “Look, I brought some white oak tree seeds I was going to plant, I’m going to give them to you so you may plant your own tree for the ones you have lost.” 

“Thank you so much,” Lucinda said excitingly.

“Yay. my father gets his own tree!” Said Liam. 

Abel was not excited but relieved that the tree wasn’t his father. Now he can be free and go on adventures. 

“But under one condition,” the lady said, “ I want to be buried under a tree next to my husband, can you promise me that you will do that for me?”

“I promise,” Lucinda said. 

“Yes ma’am,” Abel said. 

“I pinky promise,” Said Liam. 

The lady smiled. “My name is Iris by the way.”

“My name’s Lucinda,” Lucinda said.

“I’m Liam,” Liam said.

“Abel,” Abel said.

“Well well, it looks like we’ve got a deal,” Iris said. 

Time went by and Lucinda received a phone call from Iris, but it wasn’t Iris that was on the phone. Lucinda contacted her new friends and they all met at the park to fulfill Iris’s wish. They began to dig, plant, and water. Soon enough they would have their own white oak tree in Phelps Grove Park.