On Trees



So there we were, spending a quiet afternoon.
And then.
Crash.
With no warning, in an eerie imitation of the NY towers that fell 11 years ago, our neighbor's rotten tree toppled across our driveway, taking part of the Lincoln, Johnson's truck, electrical wires, a transformer and the flag pole with it.
No wind. No rain.
One minute is was standing. The next it was down.
Guess that's what they call an act of God.
It could only have been God's hand that moved the old oak just a few feet to the north of the house.
It would have been a very different story without that Grace.

The trees in our neighborhood are said to be over 100 years old. Most of them are called "water" oaks. Most of them rot from the inside out. They look pretty on the outside, full and alive. It's the rotten core you can't see that you have to worry about.

While I'm filled with gratitude that the damage was so much less than it could have been. I'm also sad at having to say yet another goodbye. Not so much to my neighbor's tree, but to the two oaks left in our yard. Weighing in on the side of prudence, we've contracted to have the them cut down. Johnson is pretty sure the one nearest his room and the aiming right for the roof is in sad shape. The slightest of breezes causes it to creak like an old lady's knees. The other stands like a sentinel,  tall and proud, right in the front of the house. It's been there longer than the house, longer than we've lived here. It has survived rain and wind, lightening and ice, and even other trees crashing into it. It has provided shelter for birds and squirrels, probably a few other critters I'm glad I don't know about.

Things change.
Old things pass away.
New things take their place.
Memories linger.
Love, like springtime, refreshes the changing landscape.
My job, like a giant oak, is to plant my feet on solid ground, stand firm in the face of adversity, bend with the wind, soak up the sun, dance in the rain, make room for visitors, wave at the stars, provide shelter and solace, share my beauty, raise my arms to heaven, and bless the earth with my countenance.

Wishing for you the comfort and safety,

Merry ME

Comments

Lilly said…
Oh my, it is very lucky there was no one standing neary or in the truck. What a shock.
September 13, 2012 at 6:57 AM
wholly jeanne said…
Will you find me silly if I say I grieve your trees? I mean, I totally understand, but still I grieve. "My job, like a giant oak, is to plant my feet on solid ground, stand firm in the face of adversity, bend with the wind, soak up the sun, dance in the rain, make room for visitors, wave at the stars, provide shelter and solace, share my beauty, raise my arms to heaven, and bless the earth with my countenance." Sugar, that's a beautiful poem you've penned there, and I feel better having typed it.
September 13, 2012 at 11:19 PM
Molly said…
I'm glad you are all safe. I'm sorry you have to give up the trees. It is sad when we have to give up things that have always been...
September 15, 2012 at 3:22 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Every Little Bit Helps

Image
UPDATE:  I'll be picking a winner on Thanksgiving Day. So make a donation and leave your name in the comment section below.  ME UPDATE:  I see a tiny problem but it should be easy to fix. Commenting anonymously doesn't get your name in the drawing. And there's no way to tell Anonymous A from Anonymous B. Are you different or the same? I need to be able to get back in touch with you somehow. We can exchange email addy's later. But please at least leave your name. If you still comment as Anonymous, just say your name in the comment.  You can use first name and last initial. Or last name alone. Or an Alias. Just so I can get your name in the hat. And really, thank you. Thank you again and again. Merry ME _____ I always breathe a sigh of relief when a storm veers away from Jacksonville.  At the same time it's hard not to feel guilty that it went somewhere else.  I was in no way prepared for Hurricane Sandy. Like a lot of others, I felt like the...
Read more

An Easter Miracle

Image
How is it that after someone you love dies, time moves on even when it feel like its standing still? Philosophers, poets and writers have tried to answer that question since time began. I don't have the answer. I just know that, by what I can only imagine is the Grace of God, it does. When you heart is broken into something resembling a 1000 piece jig saw puzzle and there are no directions on how to put it together, somehow it mends. When some else dies and it cracks again, God stitches the old wound and the new wound together into a patchwork of healed scars. Fifteen years ago, when I watched my mother draw a breath then counted the seconds before she took another but none came, I sat by her bed and tried to imagine being a motherless child. Then I did what any kid would do, ran down the long hospital corridor sounding the alarm. "My mother isn't breathing." "My mother isn't breathing."  Want to see doctors, nurses, CNAs, and cleaning ladies tur...
Read more

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY BLOG PARTY

Image
In honor of women everywhere ... Welcome to the International Women's Day Blog Party (Turn up the sound: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuB3_HLcFfk ) International Women's Day is a global day celebrating the economic, political and social achievements of women past, present and future. To this end, this party is a way to honor those special ladies who have inspired us and made us better than we ever thought we could be. It is with gratitude and pride I welcome you to my blog. I'm anxious to hear your stories and celebrate your choices. All you have to do is go down to the bottom of this post and click on the comment section. That will take you to another page where you can write your tribute in the space provided. You can use your Google/Blogger user name or remain anonymous. There is nothing to join. If you choose to post anonymously please leave your name in the comment section so we'll all know who you are. When you're through hit publish and voila your lady is o...
Read more