The Fate of The Tree

Another branch fell off The Tree late Friday night.  Neither of us in the house heard it.  

The weather was clear, with hardly a breeze.  Friendly Neighbor across the alley to the east told me he heard the crash about eleven thirty, as he was taking his dogs out for their last walk before bed.  He said it was so loud he wondered if maybe the whole Tree wasn't coming down.

This branch was only about five feet long and less than two feet around.  Some of the ivy limbs look to have struck the corner of the garage roof on the way down, but didn't do any damage.

I went out Sunday morning to cut up the fallen branch and drag the pieces to the alley, where they'll be taken away by the city workers.  I stared up into the void created by the two branches that are now gone.  The part of The Tree that remains has me concerned.  Now that the web of ivy holding it together has loosened further, it may be just a matter of time before the whole thing goes.

Two or three huge branches remain on the trunk.  Each of them is a great deal larger, in length and circumference, than the first one that fell.  The largest one looms to the south, over our back fence and Surly Neighbor's metal car port.  We'd really like to avoid an incident with Surly Neighbor if at all possible.  

The next largest, and next in sequence if the branches continue falling in the order they've been, could potentially take out a trio of power lines.  The lines run diagonally across our back yard, from the transformer at the corner of Surly Neighbor's property to the back of Spaniel Lady's house, just west of us.  Spaniel Lady is nice enough, but we'd rather not inconvenience the neighborhood, or put its residents at risk, by being the cause of downed electrical lines.

These thoughts occupied my mind during the fifteen minutes it took me to saw the ivy limbs off and stack them in the alley.  I turned my attention to the chunk of bark-encased sawdust and ivy roots that had once been a branch, still lying at the base of The Tree.  It was almost small enough to roll into the alley without having to cut it into sections.  Better to go ahead and chop it up, I decided.  Briefly I considered prevailing upon Friendly Neighbor for the use of his chain saw.  Ultimately, I used my little hand saw.  I was done disposing of the entire thing less than half an hour after I started.

Sunday evening, my mom and I discussed the fate of The Tree.  We agreed that removal of the large branches is now a priority.  We discussed the likelihood that the entire trunk will have to go as well.

We called a Tree Guy Monday afternoon.  He says he'll be able to swing by and take a look Friday afternoon.

I like that, after standing firmly in place for a minimum of a hundred years, The Tree is now going bit by bit.  As if it's reluctant to give up entirely.  I think of the hundreds of little lives - birds, wasps, beetles, butterflies, bees, and so many other creatures - that rely on The Tree for food and shelter.  Morning, afternoon, evening, night, I gaze up into the branches and entreat The Tree to hang in there, just a while longer.  For their sake, as much as my own.

The gap keeps getting bigger

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