Tell our stories, said the Tulip Poplar tree.
The request came many years ago when the relationship

between Tulip Poplar and I was just beginning. At the time,

I thought the stories to be told were only those belonging

to the tree, but time taught me that the stories to be told

belonged not only to the tree but also to me.  The stories

were indeed our stories, a shared reality. 

 

This realization occasioned the collaborative writing of

I AM the Tree, a memoir of the life danced by and between

Tulip Poplar and me.  With the I AM the Tree manuscript completed,

I stood on my deck one summer morning and considered

publication possibilities. Trees rose all around me. 

I listened as their foliate voices rustled in the breeze.
Tell our stories, Tulip Poplar said to me.  Create a place where

plants write books.  Make a way for our voices to be heard. 

You have everything you need.  Create a publishing press with me. 

Liriodendress Press has a nice ring.