The loss of a tree

I had been in denial.  Last summer and fall I watched with anxiousness as our beloved evergreen started showing signs of beetle infestation.  The top limbs started turning chartreuse green, the needles persistently began to fall and sawdust piles accumulated around the trunk.  I had a tree specialist assess the situation.  He told me what I already knew but did not want to admit.  He gave me hope though, "If the tree lasts through the winter there may be a chance of saving it."  

That hope was dashed a few weeks after I had Paine.  A December wind topped out the brittle and defenseless tree.  As if the top being blown off were not enough, the undeniable reddish burnt needles started emerging.  Our tree would not survive.    
           

I am not merely writing this post to illustrate the loss of a tree that has provided shade and beauty to our backyard.  I am writing this post, because I have often worried and fretted over the notional "what if."  

What if our tree were closer to the house?  What if the tree did top off and hit the electric wires crisscrossing the yard?  Or what if it fell backwards into the garden shed and wall?  ...What if my children were out there at exactly the wrong time?

These are certain facts.  Many trees all around town are dying.  Many trees are in positions to damage property or (may it never happen!) hurt people.  As much as it pains me to see our local trees die in line with the foreboding forests that surround us.  The impending loss of the trees around town must be dealt with and accepted.  A time to let go.  Just this morning I saw a crew taking down an old evergreen growing next to a home.  Sometimes a scene such as this makes me think about the drawings I have drawn depicting a home with an evergreen tree frame.  This will be gone for many homes.  The tree area in Laramie will sooner than later take on a starkly different appearance.  

However, there is another way to look at this phenomenon.  A friend of mine wrote a beautiful post titled:  The Regenerative Power of Nature  A definite worthwhile read!  

In this thoughtful and illuminating post she expounds, among other points of interest, a concept described by her friend:  "...part of why it’s hard to wrap our collective (lay public) minds around the current extinction is that forests typically outlive humans, and we’re not used to seeing such dramatic large-scale change." The Regenerative Power of Nature  In 20 years, or so visible beautiful, thriving new trees will start to fill the mountains and our town once again.    

The landscape of our town and the mountain places we retreat to are in a process of not only expiration but renewal. Our own backyard will never be the same. Replacing the tree that once graced our backyard is now on the forefront of our mind, as is making our backyard environment safe.

The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago.  

The next best time is now.  ~Chinese Proverb

It is difficult to realize how great a part of all that is cheerful and delightful in the recollections of our own life is associated with trees.  ~Wilson Flagg

The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit.  ~Nelson Henderson