mulberries

The disciples cried out to Jesus, “Lord, increase our faith!” Jesus answered, “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.” Most of us would expect Jesus to talk about moving mountains. Instead, he chooses the ordinary mulberry tree — stubborn, persistent, sometimes a nuisance, sometimes a blessing. I grew up around mulberries: hollow trunks perfect for little children to climb inside, deep roots that sprang back twice as strong if you cut them out of the fence line, branches that sometimes wrapped themselves around old windmills. (A tall mulberry tree in the middle of a pasture has led me to more than one wrecked and grounded windmill, just waiting to be discovered and restored.) Depending on where they grew, mulberries could be shade trees or weeds. In the Holy Land, mulberries were often associated with sorrow or death. And yet today, mulberry leaves are being studied for their healing properties: regulating blood sugar, boosting immunity, even preventing cancer. What was once seen as a symbol of loss now becomes a source of life.