Rewriting"The Giving Tree" by Shel Silverstein

The Giving Tree, first published in 1964, is an American children's book written and illustrated by Shel Silverstein.
The poem has become not only one of the author's best-known titles, but also "one of the most divisive books in children's literature".
To solve the controversy, and promote a more educational type of relationship between the main characters, based on positive attitudes and behaviours, such as gratitude and mutual support, a class of Romanian 9th graders were provided with a short video of the original story https://youtu.be/jlmH4MDxuy0 and invited to write friendlier, less controversial versions for Thanksgiving Day 2021.

Dear all,
Read the beginning of the original story below, then check which of the following modern versions you prefer.

The Giving Tree – Shel Silverstein
Once, there was a tree…
And she loved a little boy.
And every day the boy would come
And he would gather her leaves
And make them into crowns
and play king of the forest.
He would climb up her trunk
And swing from her branches
And eat apples
And they would play hide-and-go-seek.
And when he was tired,
he would sleep in her shade.
And the boy loved the tree… very much!
And the tree was happy.

Time went by, and even though the boy grew older and the tree grew more and more towering, the bond between the two of them didn’t age a day. The visits weren’t as often, but nevertheless they were precious. From time to time the boy would come to the tree, and he would play in her shade, and they would listen to each other’s stories as if they knew each other for a lifetime. Whenever the boy was in need of help or advice, the tree never refused to give her a hand, or a branch, for the matter, and the boy was always grateful.
But, as days, months, and even years passed by, the meetings between the two friends became less and less frequent. They still loved each other dearly, but the boy was slowly turning into an adult who had to figure out his life. The tree was always there, in the same place she had been since the very beginning, and will be for the rest of her eternity. But the boy couldn’t always be there, and sadly, barely has he been lately.
The tree would see the sun shine announcing a new day, and would hope that was finally the day her friend would come and visit. But it wasn’t, and she didn’t blame him for it. It was, after all, the course of life.

Then one autumn day, years later, the boy was now a charming youg man with a beautiful wife and a precious little son. They were looking for a place to stay, for a house. They checked several places, but no option seemed to delight them. With a loss of hope, the young man sat down on the ground, leaning on the trunk of an old tree. It was that exact, special moment that he remembered the old days, and how much he loved and missed his dear friend. So he got an idea: that he would move with his family back at his old house.
They went back to the place in question. When the two old friends saw each other again after all this time, they couldn’t help but shed a tear rememorating all the beautiful moments gone, but never forgotten. After they had happily met again, and after catching up with everything new going on in their lives, the young man gave the tree the big news, and she was happier than ever. Need I tell you that the story continues? After all, the tree now didn’t only have one friend, but two of them. The son was lucky enough to relive, through his own perspective, the beautiful memories of his father’s friendship. The course of life is a fascinating thing! ( written by Rebeca B.)

But time went by and the boy grew older. The sun threw his rays many times upon the tree’s branches and each day she grew more and more beautiful. The boy visited her, but not the way he used to. They didn’t play or climb anymore, he didn’t fall asleep in her shade. Maybe it wasn’t interesting because he was older or maybe the boy just got bored.
One day, the forest where our tree lived, needed to be cut down immediately for the construction of a hospital. The boy heard the news and his heart broke. His lovely friend wouldn’t be there tomorrow. He couldn’t sleep all night. He was just staring at the ceiling while in his head were playing the memories of a happy child. Despite this, he had an idea. Early in the morning, he cut a sapling and planted it in his yard, near the window. He spent all morning beside the tree and talked to her.
Time passed and the sapling grew. The boy had his own family who loved the tree as much as he did.
See? This happens when we take advantage of people. We only miss them and feel their absence when they are already gone. The boy did the same with the tree, but luckily it wasn’t too late. Love the people that love you unconditionally, show them respect and mercy. We must be thankful for souls like this because we don’t come across angels daily.
Ever since that day, the tree has happily lived near his family. (written by Cezara D.)

But time went by, and the boy grew older. He did not visit the tree anymore, but one day, he returned happier than ever, and so delighted to meet his old friend again.

I missed you!, said the tree.

Here I am, back to you, and I have a little surprise for you! replied the boy. I want to thank you for all the beautiful moments and memories, for helping me to have a wonderful childhood. So I brought some seeds to plant near you. You will have a new friend to spend time with.

How kind of you! I missed talking to a friend, replied the tree, and no one has been or will ever be able to replace you!

I grew up and I didn`t have much time to visit you, but I promise you that every year, on Thanksgiving, I will return to thank you for being more than a regular tree, for being my tree, the best friend anyone could ever want.

Don`t make me cry! I love you, my little boy!, said the tree.

I love you too, my dear friend!, said the boy. (written by Darius P.)

The tree became the child’s best friend. They spent all their time together, even if the weather was bad.

The child asked his father where that tree had come from and his father told him that he had bought it when he was born. The child was so happy with the news that he went to the tree and told her that they were the same age. From that day on, the child took care of his tree as best he could, and the tree gave him apples as a reward.

After a while, the child became an adult and noticed that he could not spend so much time with his tree, so he decided to buy another apple tree. The grown-up boy, after a while, had a child, and he taught him to take care of those two trees in his absence. He taught his child how to water the trees, how to clean them and how to climb them without hurting them.

The adult saw his son was so happy and he told him about the past of the first tree, and he realized that this kind of childhood, that his own child was living, he had also had in the past: one spent with friends in the middle of nature.

They all continued to take care of each other and all four of them grew up happily into old age. (written by Alexandru M.)

One time, when the boy desperately needed money, the tree offered him her apples. And so the boy climbed up the tree, gathered her apples and said “Thank you for giving me your apples, I will keep one in my pocket to remember your kindness".

Next time the boy came to the tree he said: “I really need a house to keep me warm.”
“I have no house” said the tree. “But you may cut off my branches and build a house.”

And so the boy cut off her branches and said: “I will keep one branch to remember you by”. And then he left.

After a long time the boy came back again. He was old and weak. He had lived his life. The tree was sad because she was chopped and ready to die, but the boy said: “I am sorry for using you to create a better life for me. Now I am old and sad and all the things I have done to you make me sadder.”. And then the boy remembered the apple and the stick he had taken and said: “I will make a hole in the ground with your last branch and I will put there a seed from your last apple and, in time, you will grow again and help the earth breathe again.” Then the old boy sat on the old stump to rest happily because he had given the tree a second chance. (written by Dimitrie S.)

Time passed and the boy grew, and the tree was happier because she was visited every day. Her sweet apples were the happiness of the child and the boy's smile was the strength that kept them in their lovely friendship.
One day, the boy wanted a house in the tree and asked his friend if she could help him:
Hey , I really want a tree house. Can you help me?
The tree, happy that she could help her friend, told him:
Yes, how can I do that?
Well, I'd like you to be the trunk of my house.
Of course, I can do that.
In a few days the dream house was completed. Their friendship went very well until the day the tree began to lose her branches.
Seeing this , the boy immediately looked for a remedy. After many searches he did not find anything, but he found out the cause ... the tree was getting old. One day the tree told the boy to bring a specialist to move her to another part of the forest where he could have more sunlight.
The boy did this and the tree was relocated.
Their relationship is still very strong to this day. (written by Eduard D.)