The Moral Vision
Teacher Tree
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TEACHER TREE
The tree-trunk forms one half of a tree and the roots
the other half. Botanists tell us that there is just as
much of a tree spread under the ground as there is
standing above the ground. The top half of a tree
can only stand erect and verdant above the ground
when it is prepared to bury its other half beneath
the ground. This is an example which trees show to
mankind; a philosopher puts it this way:
“Root downward, fruit upward, that is the
divine protocol.”
The rose comes to a perfect combination of colour,
line and aroma atop a tall stem. Its perfection is
achieved, however, because first a root went down
into the homely matrix of the common earth. Those
who till the soil or garden understand the analogy.
Our interests have so centred on gathering the fruit
that it has been easy to forget the cultivation of the
root.
A tree stands above the ground, fixing its roots
firmly beneath the ground. It grows from beneath,
upwards into the air; it does not start at the top and
