Lake Lewisia #816

"It is not something I can easily teach to one so young, one who barely has any rings within them," the tree said, regarding them through several hollow eyes in its trunk. When the child asked, it said, "You stand, whatever the weather or the season, and if you stand long enough without falling, you will have another ring." And when the child planted their feet in the leafmould and gave every indication of intending to do just that despite their tender, barkless body and undeveloped roots, the tree traded favors with the nearby vines and bound them up, a bolster to their sapling strength.

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LL#816