Shema (Listening) Spiral Ceiling Tree Installation. - Commissioned
paper-mache, palm fronds
8'x 35"circumference 

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The Shema (Listening) Tree, located on the first floor of TBSIS, was created as a culmination of the tree explorations that occurred in Liset's classroom throughout a ten year span.  The interactive tree is symbolic of important world values such as community, thankfulness, relationships, rebirth, repairing the world, kindness, and love, to name just a few. Besides connecting a community through the yearly participation and contribution of palm fronds on which families answer essential questions asked about their children, it also houses the Calder Dream Beads.
Calder Sloan was a student at TBSIS who suffered an accidental and untimely death at the age of 7. His parents, Chris and Carla Sloan commissioned Liset to create a memorial for him. Liset's decision to add beads in his honor to her in progress Shema (Listening) Tree project proved was very well received.
Every year, the PreK graduates are  invited to create a bead that shares what they want to be when they grow up. 
The Listening Tree continues to represent all it was originally designed to, however, the addition of the Calder Dream Beads caused it to metamorphize into an art installation that transcends the realm of loss, serves as a source of healing and a celebration of life.
The tree grows slowly  just as the healing processes often do.