Thousands of Grackles gather every evening at sunset throughout neighborhoods in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, Texas. It doesn’t take long to learn not to park your car under trees.
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Moore, OK late Summer storm
3-toed Sloth at the Dallas World Aquarium
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Summer storm, South Dakota
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Somerset Maugham said, “There is never enough time for love and art”.
To elaborate:
There is not enough time for love of trees and art.
It’s Green, baby!
Spring Silhouettes
These photos were shot the other day when the weather was grey and the new leaves of the Oak on our front lawn blew in the 30 mph wind gusts. It’s astonishing that the tender young leaves were still tough enough to hang on and not rip in that rough wind. With the sun just barely shining through the overcast clouds, the effect of their silhouettes is so surreal.
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One Sweet World
Excerpt of One Sweet World by Songwriter Dave Matthews
Nine planets around the sun,
the only one with something there
Upon this watered one
so much we take for granted
If greens all turned to grey
would our hearts still bloody be?
…so let us sleep outside tonight;
lay down in our Mother’s arms
and here we will rest safely.
Update – originally posted September 11, 2008
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This set of photos honors the efforts of a petition to halt construction on John’s Island, South Carolina that would have encroached on an area of land boasting an Oak tree estimated to be between 300 and 400 years old.
Charleston, SC is proud of its heritage and respected for its commitment to preserving history in the area. Thanks to individuals rallying together and signing a petition, we are reassured that small efforts can and do make a difference on this planet. The land surrounding the Angel Oak is no longer in jeopardy. 17 acres were purchased by Lowcountry Land Trust, protecting the area adjacent to the tree.
Initially I wrote a longer article promoting the petition and website, which is no longer active. There were pages of exclamations by tourists who have visited the area specifically to see the Angel Oak, and interesting comments and pleas from residents who have fond memories of climbing the branches as children, and whose children now do the same. A nearby elementary school carries its’ name.
During the summer of 2008, my husband and I drove through South Carolina and took a short detour to John’s Island because I had heard of the tree and was very curious to see it. We drove through wicked rains at the edge of Tropical storm Faye, so when we arrived at Angel Oak park no one else was there. The tree trunk and lower branches are so immense, many have been propped up with stakes and heavy cables here and there, which is a little intrusive for photo-taking, but obviously necessary. Growth is spread outward more than upward, occupying an enormous space at least 150 feet wide.
According to after the Category 5 Hurricane Hugo hit the coast of in 1989, Governor Carroll Campbell is reported to say that the storm destroyed enough timber in South Carolina to frame a home for every family in the state of West Virginia. All those trees and forests obliterated, yet The Angel Oak survived. It has since healed injuries inflicted by Hurricane Hugo.
In the midst of winter we are back to Nature’s basics; the beauty of Structure, and the structure of Beauty. However, out in traffic the effects of the ice storm are not so pretty.
