What is the importance of the "tree" motif in the novel, Count the Ways?

Maynard incorporates the motif of the tree to symbolize that families are not indestructible, but that something good can always come from tragedy. From the time the tree, Old Ashworthy, is introduced in the novel, it is a sign of stability, home, and family. Eleanor uses it later as a symbol of her family and their happiness in her non-comic strip. When the tree falls and crushes the house, it is a sign that nothing is infallible, but that even tragedies that seem insurmountable can be overcome.