At her feet we've gathered morel mushrooms. Morels love to sprout under old apple trees. In the photo above you can see her branch that broke off last year in the foreground.
We think she lay down to rest in the 40 mph wind (64 km per hour) Wednesday, without our knowing. I walked out today in the fresh snow, and there she was. She died quietly in our sleep.
See the stump on the left? The bark broke right off, leaving a hollow that we'd like to preserve for the chickens Don has ordered to arrive in April. When they're outside the coop, out in the fenced pen, they will like to crawl into our dear old woman's skin to get out of the sun.
I would also like to build something else with her wood. And see the "S" reaching up? Don thinks that would make a nice perch inside the henhouse.
Thanks to Swedehart and Loring, I learned about the Hans Christian Andersen story "The Pine Tree." It's short, you can read it in a few minutes:
"If I only could have been happy while I had the chance to be."
23 comments:
I think that's a fantastic idea. Such amazing photos as always!
I have an award to pass along to you...drop by.
She had a good long life and the chickies will appreciate her shelter.
OMG, I am weeping for her. I know she is lucky to have you to care for her remains. What a transition for her. Have you ever read that story about the tree who is so excited to become a Christmas tree, who watches the people come out with their sleigh every year to pick a tree, and this little tree just thinks it's the greatest honor? If not, I'll have to figure out what it was called so that you can read it. You would love it!
That was Hans Christian Andersen - "The Fir Tree" - great story.
WoW...some very beautifully captured shots & nice reading the decription. I love the snowfall...in this part of the world also it is snowing heavily this time in the hills....have a nice time!
Thanks, Drowsey. And thank you very much for the spreading luv award!
Heather, do you recall your dad ever using something like this for his chicks?
I haven't read that story, Swedehart, but it sounds like one I should.
Thanks to Loring for the title.
Thank you, Kalyan. I would like to see the snow in the Himalayas. It must be frightening in a way to experience it in the wilderness there.
These pictures are just amazing, the snow adds drama, love the story behind it, I know you will come up with something beautifull.
Astrid, she is so big, and you can't tell in these photos. I should have had something to show the scale.
I will post whatever is created when the time comes.
Thank you.
Oh it is a wonderful story, please do read it. It will only take about an hour or two to finish.
I found a volume of Hans Christian Andersen on our shelf and read "The Pine Tree" (I guess the translator named it a little differently.) Now I've posted a link to the story online in the post.
Ruth, I don't remember him using a fallen tree for his chickies, but they do like places to roost. The S curve branch would be good for that. I also think it's good for them to have things like the tree to play in and around. I'll ask my dad his thoughts.
This version is very close, yet there is another which is eloquently descriptive and continues to tell the tale of what happens to the tree even after he is burned, which is the most exquisite part of the story! Maybe I'll stumble upon it again some day so that I can share it.
Oh I hope so! I wonder why it is missing in both this version and my book version.
Thanks, Heather.
Ohhhhh. This is so touching, Ruth. It has lots of synchronicity for me right now, as you know. WOW.
Boots, I hear you.
All things must pass. i don't know who said that. Its sad to see her go. Trees become our friends, and so are the tables chairs and cabinets, cupboards, any wooden furniture. They become a part of our lives We fight for them. We never part with them. (TV or the computer is not our friend, its a disease ) i talk to the trees, i talk to the table. ( That doesn't sound very healthy does it Ruth ? )
Growing old gracefully is a joy. Desperately trying to cling on to youth is a misery. The tree had to go. It will be there in your life in a different form Ruth.
Funny, what Rauf said reminds me of my friend, Jeff. I've posted about him. He has this cute accent as he is from the Phillipines. Every morning he wakes up and says, "Good morning plant, good morning table, good morning... " to everything he comes across. And when he goes to sleep, he says goodnight to everyone, too. He lives alone, and yet, not alone!
Well, rauf, it was a George Harrison album, I know that.
Yes. I love the whole cycle. I even love the death of this tree. I wrote about it in a poem I'm still working on.
My mom had a very healthy view on ageing, and I appreciate that model. I'm proud to be 51. Heavens, I wouldn't want to be 18 again (except for that ache in my hip where I fell on the ice that I felt coming up the stairs today).
Talking to the furniture? I think it's lovely. Lesley loved a book called "Goodnight, Moon" in which a little rabbit is getting ready for bed. And as it gets later and the room gets darker, he says goodnight to everything in the room. Oh, I think it's lovely to recognize the is-ness of things.
You know, Rachel, just speaking to those things would make you remember they are there and appreciate them. It's way too easy for me to look past the objects around me. Does Jeff say his hellos in English then?
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