The Giving Tree is a tale of giving and greed. In the start, a boy loved a tree and said the tree loved the boy. The boy played with the tree everyday, and carved his initials into its trunk. But one day the boy stopped playing with the tree but started asking for more from the tree. The tree gave the boy its apples for the boy to sell, his branches for the boy to build a house, and his trunk for the boy to make a boat. Despite the tree’s kindness, the boy left the tree alone. Over time the initials that once represented the boy’s love for the tree faded, as did the memory of the boy. Finally, in his old age the boy returned to the tree and took one last gift. He used the remaining stump as a seat, leaving the tree happy once again.

In the story, it begins with mutual love, but as time goes on the boy becomes dissatisfied. The tree, in his love for the boy, does whatever he can to make the boy happy. These acts of kindness satisfy the boy for a bit, but they quickly fade, leaving the boy dissatisfied once more, so the tree keeps giving. It gives until it has nothing left to give, running itself down to a stump trying to make the boy happy, just for the boy to seemingly abandon him. But the boy returns.

Cavalier’s are taught to show kindness for all, appreciate, and to strive beyond immediate satisfaction. A cavalier would give their all to help people. The question is, how much is too much to give? Will you sometimes put yourself first? Will you remember those who give you all they have? Are we always going to be dissatisfied in life? How can we achieve satisfaction?