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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It’s time to learn the Torah of the garden.