Who—or What—Is at the Heart of Your Family Tree?

Years after I began writing family stories and researching genealogy, I serendipitously stumbled across a word that gave me a new perspective on the importance of family storytellers and historians.

I don’t remember what drove me to look up “heartwood.” The New Oxford Dictionary defined it as “the dense inner part of a tree trunk, yielding the hardest timber.”

Curious to learn more, I found a fuller explanation of heartwood’s form and function at Arborday.org:

“As newer rings of sapwood are laid down, inner cells lose their vitality and turn to heartwood. Heartwood is the central, supporting pillar of the tree. Although dead, it will not decay or lose strength while the outer layers are intact. A composite of hollow, needlelike cellulose fibers bound together by a chemical glue called lignin, it is in many ways as strong as steel. A piece 12″ long and 1″ by 2″ in cross section set vertically can support a weight of twenty tons!”[1]

I took a walk and considered the heartwood of our family trees. I envisioned each generation making up the concentrical rings. I mused on the importance of keeping the outer layers intact, and ways to do that. I wondered if family stories are like lignin.

According to Ryan Johnson at study.com, lignin “works as a kind of ‘skeleton’ or ‘backbone,’ providing structure and support. Lignin is a branching material that holds a plant together and keeps the structure of the plant stable. It’s most prevalent in woody trees, and is responsible for most of their strength. Lignin also keeps out diseases, toxins, and bugs while keeping water inside.”

Yes, I can see how stories can become the lignin of a family’s tree.

Generations of our ancestors have passed away. Yet, stories told by them or about them still keep them alive for us. Remembering, researching, and sharing these stories will help keep our family trees strong and intact. For the stories bind us together with an emotional glue that is, in many ways, stronger than steel.

• What stories about deceased relatives do your family keep alive?
• What family stories do you want to keep alive? How are you going to do that?
• What compels you to gather and share family stories?
• What stories make up the heartwood of your family tree?
  

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[1]  Arbor Day Foundation, “Anatomy of a Tree,” Trunk, Heartwood, arborday.org, https://www.arborday.org/trees/ringstreenatomy.cfm : accessed 04 Dec 2024).