For thousands of years, there’s really only been one way to grow a tree; seed and soil meet under the right conditions, set root, and grow over many years into beautiful natural works of highly functional art.

Today, across the broad scope of the $100 Billion landscaping industry, buying, moving, and transplanting a 25-year-old ash tree from one coast of Long Island to another would set you back roughly $20,000. A relatively small price to pay for the elite segment of the market where five-million-dollar tree budgets aren’t unheard of for some estates.

Don’t worry, this isn’t about some rich blokes and their “brand new” 45-year-old oak trees; it’s about a special tree in my life and simple lesson. The tree, planted over two decades ago by my grandfather, came long before the lesson – something that dawned on me only recently – but like any revelation in life, the answers may always be there but it’s only when we notice them that we accept them into our lives as truths.

When my parents bought their humble home in Brooklyn and became homeowners, my grandfather Stanley (παππού Στέλιο) planted a pear tree in our (now my parents) yard. What was unique about this pear tree though, was that it would produce three different varieties of pear when it reached its fruit bearing years. I’ll be the first to confirm that no single pear seed, regardless of conditions, would ever grow into a tree that produces three varieties of fruit. This tree though, was grafted, by my grandfather’s own hands. Grafting is a common and “modern” method of horticulture whereby branches and saplings of genetically identical trees can be attached to healthy root stocks to grow upon. The grape vines of the wine producing industry in America for instance, regardless of grape varietal, are grafted onto one of three rootstocks which have proved healthy, stable, and blight-resistant over the years). For some DIY artisans, like my grandfather, grafting presented the opportunity to grow three types of pears on a single root stock which occupied less real estate in the high price/SQFT land of Brooklyn.

A family tree, like any tree, has traditionally taken root and grown over many generations. The lesson learned from my grandfather came to me at a time when I struggled with the idea of creating my own family tree. God knows my family, however quirky the affection dynamics can feel at times, at its core, is a healthy rootstock worthy of building a family on. It’s with their open hearts and loving attitudes that made it easy for me to bring a few extra gems to this family.

On my wedding day last September, I married three people at once. My beautiful wife and partner along with her two lovely, amazing children. Now that we’re grafted on a single rootstock, it’s time to build a future and home together; a home where we grow Greek pears, Russians pears, and the long-anticipated Greco-Russian hybrid. Family is family no matter which way you plant it, and it’s made with love, effort, faith, and a little bit of creativity. In the end, no one really cares how many varieties of pear you grow, or how many root stocks they come from – they just want to know what kind of ice cream you’re serving the pear tarts with at Thanksgiving dinner.