It started as a children’s story. Around the Humber Arboretum, Landscape Technician Talete Gallo is known as a construction guru who can build just about anything out of wood, cement, or stone. But at home he’s a father who also crafts stories to tell his young daughter. One of those stories is about Mr. Valumpsy, a man who lives in a large tree and greets anyone who passes beneath it with a gift of the many fruits and vegetables he grows in the tree’s branches. Talete tells his daughter that Mr. Valumpsy has the biggest heart in the world because the greatest way to grow your heart is to grow things you can give away. When the idea to create a mosaic at the entrance to the Humber Arboretum began to form, Talete turned to Mr. Valumpsy for inspiration. Unlike Mr. Valumpsy’s tree, most of the branches of the Tree of Hope are bare, with just a few buds. But at the center of the mosaic two leaves hang close to a heart. Those two leaves represent the hope that humanity can still do good things for the environment as long as we choose to keep nature close to our heart and help new things to grow. Created through the careful placement of small coloured stones, the Tree of Hope is just part of the new welcome area for the Humber Arboretum. New benches built from larger stones in a wire frame begin at the entrance and carry the theme into the grounds. The old wooden kiosk is getting a facelift and extension with new signage on the way to help orient visitors. But the mosaic is the most unusual feature, as in-ground mosaics are hard to create in the Canadian climate. Fluctuating temperatures can cause stones to pop out if the proper materials aren’t used, and even with the expertise of Arboretum staff behind it, there’s a chance the Tree of Hope will need a little help to always stay looking its best.   A beautiful representation of the principles behind the Humber Arboretum, the Tree of Hope is intended as a gift for all who pass by it with the hopes that it will inspire them to nurture nature’s gifts and grow their own hearts in the process. humber.ca/arboretum