In our backyard is an apple tree. And a mulberry tree. They co-habitate there. Today I’m looking at the two, so closely intertwined, the bark of the mulberry smooth and brown against the darker bark of the gnarled apple tree. It’s another quantum flirt, reminding me of relationships.

Whether friends, families, co-workers, spouses, or lovers — we’re no two alike, and it’s a real accomplishment to grow together, to support one another, yet to embrace our differences. Our apple tree blooms and bears fruit every other year. Our mulberry tree reaches for the sky, blooms, and bears fruit every year. They co-exist, their branches supportively intertwined as they thrive and provide food for countless creatures.

Maybe the real reason this quantum flirt arises is to remind me to celebrate and honor what makes me “me,” while embracing relationship with others. Because in right relationship, we don’t strive to become alike, but to walk alongside and appreciate what is unique about one another. Or in this case, to sink roots deep into the ground, sharing the very nutrients of life without ever changing our essence.