neng and 924
One of the stories gathered from a UT Dallas participant by the name of Neng was a result of following him along his path to the lot where he parks his car. While discussing the trees he passes daily, he pointed to a crepe myrtle that was situated at the edge of the curb. The tree was beautiful, crepe myrtle trees are ornamental, after all. There were others in the vicinity, but this one was the first tree to the right of Neng’s path and therefore a landmark on his way to and from class. We identified the number tag attached to the tree as 924. When prompted to tell me what made this tree meaningful, Neng shared a recollection about his son. The tree reminded him of his five-year-old son (who is now a young adult) and a tree sapling he brought home from school one day. Together, Neng and his son planted it in the front yard of their home. Fourteen years later, the tree became a beautiful crepe myrtle tree, just like the one Neng encounters to and from class at UTD. Were it not for the memory triggered by Tree Number 924, Neng’s beautiful story about fatherhood and tree planting wouldn’t have had a reason to be shared