I can’t see a weeping willow tree without it bringing me back to a sacred, secret hiding place as a child. 

On the side of my childhood home at our property line grew the most magnificent weeping willow tree. I can still recall hanging out there under the bowing branches of that tree. Today, as an adult, it amazes me to think how something so simple can bring an incredible amount of peace to a person. 

It is not lost on me that God gave me that weeping willow as a safe refuge during some of the most traumatic times in my life. It was my escape from the trauma inside my home. I used to go there in the afternoons to do homework after school, write in my diary, have a tea party with my baby dolls, and sometimes just lie on the ground looking up at the beautiful canopy of security it offered me. 

That green veil shielded me from the world. The draping veil, curtain, the boughing branches felt like a friend, a cozy blanket, a secret. 

Without knowing it then, I learned some valuable lessons from the weeping willow tree. The Lord, my God, met me right there in my private sanctuary and taught me some powerful life lessons that, while they assisted me through childhood pain and trauma, weren’t really truly realized until later in life. 

Bending, Not Breaking

I might bend, but I’ll never break. The weeping willow branches are made of flexible wood! It doesn’t rigidly resist the wind. Instead, it bends with it. As a child, I was learning to go with the flow and to bend without losing myself. It was there under the weeping willow that I learned to survive. 

Seeks Living Water

The weeping willow thrives when near a water source. It aggressively seeks living water. The root system of a weeping willow is strong, but surprisingly shallow. It reaches outward for nourishment instead of going deep. It knows to stay connected to its source – living water. 

Quickly Rebounds

I love the word rebound for some reason. The weeping willow is known for the shade it provides. Under that shade, I became new, refreshed, and energized. The resiliency I learned as a child is surely credited to my retreats under the weeping willow. Like the weeping willow, when damage was evident from trauma, we both kept going thanks to the ability to bounce back. The willow reaches out for living water where it is nourished, allowing it to thrive and rebound. 

Create Secret Spaces

It’s hard to look at a weeping willow, in all its glory, without noticing the secret space created under the canopy of green. It is known for drawing children in. It’s fascinating and attractive. There, many children can escape into a new world of fantasy, but for me, I found refuge there. My weeping willow was so vast and thick that I could hide there. I remember times when family members would come outside yelling my name, trying to find me. I was hiding in my secret space – the spot where I was dreaming, writing, and escaping. I felt peace there under the willow’s veil. 

Willows Bow

The shape of the weeping willow is different from other trees. Most trees grow upward, bold and strong. The weeping willow grows in a manner similar to bowing. The whimsical branches appear to be weak and weeping, but they’re not; they’re strong and resilient because of their flexibility and bowing. As we do in prayer, we bow our heads. The weeping willow’s branches sweep down, creating a curtain – a sanctuary. 

History points to the weeping willow as a symbol of survival after suffering. Jeremiah 17:8 says, “He will be like a tree planted by water: it sends its roots out toward a stream, it doesn’t fear…” This verse encourages and reminds me that when I am connected to the source of life, I have nothing to fear. I am going to be ok. I will thrive in this life. 

Likewise, Isaiah 44:4 instructs us, saying, “They will thrive like watered grass, like willows on a riverbank.” 

While in New York City right before my son’s graduation from West Point, we were exploring Liberty Park. The gorgeous park where you can easily see the glorious Statue of Liberty. While walking, my attention was captured by this stunning weeping willow tree. Immediately, it brought me back to my childhood, but this time, instead of remembering the pain, I found myself in a moment of extreme gratitude for the healing, wisdom, and rebirth that came from my time under my childhood weeping willow tree. 

When you see a weeping willow, does it symbolize anything for you? 

Do you have a sacred, secret place of security where you go to rebound?