Love is a tree root

The poet Emily Dickinson said that “hope is a thing with feathers”, by which she meant, I think, that hope is a gentle thing, and soft. That it flutters like a bird, beautiful and unpredictable, but faithful, showing up in unexpected places. Hope, she says, “perches in the soul, and sings the tune without the words.”

So then, how would we describe love, love in all its forms?

I would offer this: love is, also, a thing with feathers…and with spikes. And maybe razor blades and hammers as well as flowers and food and friendship. This is what I mean—love can be warm like a down comforter, but it can also be a spiky thing. Sharp and powerful, like a mother eagle’s talons. Like a barbed wire fence sometimes, keeping the boundaries defined. Solid and trustworthy as a steel anchor. Round and flexible as an embrace. Loud like a protest song. Or silly, like Catherine when she’s hanging out with her mom at the end of a long day.

I’m thinking a lot about trees these days—stay with me now—and how they grow, and what they look like, and what kind of personalities they have and how they communicate and how clever they are. I’m thinking about the fruit they bear and the ways they share themselves so effusively with us humans, and the many other creatures that benefit as well.

I think trees are a good metaphor for love.

Here’s what I mean - most of what we think of when we think of trees are the parts we see—the trunk, the branches, leaves and fruit, a shady place to sit.

But, of course, there’s more to a tree than that. Those who know trees tell us that the roots of a tree can spread out as much as two to five times the width of the canopy (the above-ground part of the tree.) All those roots, collecting nutrients, water, and oxygen from the ground. And we won’t even get into how those trees are talking to one another underground and sharing resources with each other.

But here’s the thing I want to say. Love is a tree root. What comes out above ground may show up in all sorts of ways, in many shapes and sizes. Think of a palm tree or an apple tree, or a redwood. ALL OF IT is coming from those roots (plus a little sunshine and some fresh air).

Love is a tree root, and if we cultivate and care for it—out of sight, underground—it will feed us, give us strength, and support us. What sprouts up into the world as a result—strong branches, green leaves, and tasty fruit—that’s what we call “love in all its forms”.

Here are some words for what it might look like, above ground: persistence, joy, friendship, resilience, compassion, rage, generosity, romance, grief, courage, determination, grace, faith, desire, sacrifice, rest.

These are some of my words for love. What others do you have?

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Peter Schrock
June 2025