Memorial tree planting is a very symbolic act for a family to engage in. A memorial Tree is more than just a symbol, it becomes a focal point. An emblem to gather around. If you have a memorial tree planted somewhere else, is it not wonderful to think that there is a place that will forever remember your loved one, a proud tree that can live a 1000 years, with a memorial plaque on it. A reminder,  a celebration of a life lived. In a memorial Tree planting, one is also giving something back to nature, making a connection to the earth, to the planet. Tree's give life, to other animals and plants, give oxygen to the air. They are a wonderful fitting emblem of the world that we exist in, co-exist with. A memorial tree planting is about establishing a tree of life, a living memorial.

An excellent example of this concept is the Magnolia tree planted in the Whitehouse by President Andrew Jackson. After his wife passed on he had a memorial tree planting ceremony, in which he sat a Southern Magnolia Tree in the Whitehouse. The tree still grows there, and indeed a cutting of it was taken recently and planted in the home of Jackson as a memorial tree to him. So a tree that he planted in 1807 was returned via a cutting to his home and planted there in a memorial tree planting ceremony.

Now that is what I call continuity.