The writer once read an interesting article about the dwarf trees that gardeners sometimes produce. These little trees may be well over one hundred years old, but are still so small that they grow in containers a foot or less in diameter. In order to produce these dwarfs the gardeners resort to many devices to stunt their growth and make them assume gnarled and twisted forms. The tap roots of the young trees are cut off, wires are wrapped tightly around other roots, while smaller ones are cut away. Weights are tied to the young limbs to give them a downward droop.
What a contrast these little trees present to the forest giants, on whose growth no restriction is placed! The forest trees sink their roots deep into the rich soil and grow and grow, their branches outstretched to the sun or the storms.
Often one's human experience seems to resemble the dwarf tree, its growth being stunted by fear, beliefs of contagion, heredity, poverty, sickness, and sin. But when Christian Science comes to one with its message of freedom and joy, the natural desire to grow and prosper is nurtured and the cramped thought is released.
