6 | JUNE 29 • 2023 

essay
Summer Is Here

M

y mother died in 
February, and since 
then I’ve been car-
ing for her home. At the time 
of her death, she 
had over a hun-
dred plants — 
and that’s only 
inside the house. 
Outside, there 
were hundreds 
more — roses 
and lilacs and 
dahlias, lilies of the valley and 
irises and daffodils, violets 
and honeysuckle and sunflow-
ers. They bloom in almost 
all seasons, from late winter 
to late autumn. Except when 
the ground is frozen, there is 
never a moment when some-
thing is not blooming in my 
mother’s garden. And she cel-
ebrated when they bloomed, 

whether once a season or once 
every 10 years. They were, in 
many ways, the great work of 
her life, and it’s powerful for 
me to be caring for them now.
I grew up surrounded by 
those plants. I ate wild straw-
berries, chestnuts and pears. 
I used pine needles for doll 
beds and hickory nuts for toy 
food. I slept (or pretended 
to) on carpets of moss and 
used branches of sumac as 
scepters. Once, I dug up some 
daffodils near the creek and 
moved them to my “garden” 
in the woods. My mother was 
furious (though those daffo-
dils still bloom in the woods 
every spring). But my early 
plant experiences were mostly 
good. I planted peas with my 
father and watched him guide 
the young bean plants up 

their poles. I noted when the 
violets came out and when the 
chestnuts fell from their trees. 
I particularly loved the wild 
roses that bloomed in June (in 
fact, they’re blooming now). 
For me, as for my mother, 
the plants are their own kind 
of people — beings I try to 
nurture, appreciate and under-
stand.
So it’s moving to me that the 
Jewish tradition sees plants in 
a similar way — as beings with 
voices. Psalm 96:12 states: 
“Let the fields rejoice and all 
that is in them; let the trees of 

the forest sing for joy.” Psalm 
17:33 proclaims: “Let the trees 
of the forest sing at the pres-
ence of God.” In Psalm 48:8, 
the fruit trees offer praise. 
In Isaiah 55:12, the trees clap 
hands.
Maimonides understood 
these verses to be metaphors, 
but the Midrash — writings 
that fill in gaps in biblical texts 
— claims that trees do in fact 
speak with one another and 
with other creatures, and that 
they discuss the Earth and 
its well-being. The Jerusalem 
Talmud, too, understands 

Rabbi Jill 
Hammer
JTA.org

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