It was much like the birth of a foal, slick & bloody & a frightful mess. As I pulled it free of the root, clear fluid gushed from the opening. Trailing from the infant’s belly was a long umbilical string, blue tinged, throbbing with life. I held the baby with one hand, tugged the cord with the other. As the umbilicus continued to snake out of the ground, I began to dread what I would find at the other end. Gradually the cord turned rough & coarse & coated in dirt. I had pulled several feet when it stopped fast. Here at the end the umbilicus was no longer malleable & fleshy. It was a tree root!
