knowing trees

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5.14.13 ~ Stonington Cemetery

Finally, some leaves have appeared on my tree! I think it is an elm tree.

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My grandparents had an elm tree on the northwest corner of their house lot. Its branches and leaves could almost be touched when looking out the window of the green bedroom, feeling like the leaf canopy of this elm in the above picture.

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Knowing trees, I understand the meaning of patience.
~ Hal Borland
(Countryman: A Summary of Belief)

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Zoë ~ 5.13.13
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flag flying outside our fish market today ~ 5.14.13

Toby went into the hospital for cancer surgery five days ago, and will probably be staying there for another week or so. The day he went into the hospital I had to go up to my father’s house for a few days to help out with the ancient ones. Chelsea had some time off so my aunt Em from Maryland came up and she and I tried our best to fill Chelsea’s shoes! It’s good to be back home now and slip into a more “normal” routine again, at least for a little while.

Up at my dad’s it was so quiet without Bernie around, but I was able to get outside for a short walk and take a few pictures. Later, while sitting on the porch watching birds with Dad, I experimented with the telescopic lens and got a fairly decent picture of a nuthatch (below), if a little blurry! But next time I think I will use the sports setting with the auto-shoot feature. It worked so well today with the flag picture this morning (above), which was whipping in the wind.  Enjoy!

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a nuthatch
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pansies for Bernie
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branch shadows playing with the roots of my hemlock tree
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trillium
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garden steps
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primrose
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life and death on a maple leaf, spider eating a lady bug
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garden whimsy

14 thoughts on “knowing trees”

  1. Nice work Ms. Photographer!

    I believe that IS trillium and the next one is primrose.

    Elm is so rare. I’m excited to think that’s what your tree is.

  2. Yes, trillium! Beautiful photos. I was so disappointed to wake up to snow falling today; usually the trees are budded out, but this is the coldest spring on record since 1955. People are a little big grumpy.

    1. Thanks for the compliment and for confirming the trillium identification, Monica! I’m quite sure I would be grumpy, too, if snow was still falling in the springtime here. Hope Spring will find its way to your area soon!

  3. Just reading the title of this post made me smile Barbara, as I knew what it meant. You must have been drawn to your tree as it reminded you of your grandparents home, and isn’t it just so appropriate now to name your tree Grandmother?

    They are beautiful photos from your father’s garden, it’s so much fun experimenting with a camera. I hope your dad is doing well, and it’s so good to see Zoe again too.

    1. I’m smiling, too, Joanne, and so happy that you did know and remember the meaning and connection to Grandmother Willow. When I was growing up I didn’t know that my grandparents’ tree was an elm, it was just a friendly tree. After we grew up, my cousin identified it for me. He used to fight with the utilities company who wanted to cut it down – as long as he kept it trimmed back from the power lines they let him keep it. Now that the house had to be sold, I wonder if it is still standing…

    1. What a treat, spotting seven lady slippers! Tomorrow my friends and I are going for a guided Lady Slipper hike offered by our local nature center – I hope we spot some, too.

  4. oh gosh so much to like in this post Barbara. Your pictures of the early flowers are really lovely – even Trilliums! The Hal Borland quote is brilliant
    Best wishes for a speedy recovery from his surgery for brother #4.
    Nice to see the leaves on your tree.

    1. Thank you, Rosie! And thank you for your well wishes for Brother #4, who will be coming home tomorrow, several days sooner than expected. He will be resting for four weeks and then begin some chemotherapy and radiation treatments. I have a feeling he’ll be back in the garden before too long!

    1. Thank you, Robin. There are so many kinds of elm trees, I wish I could figure out which one it is, American, winged, slippery, rock, cedar? 🙂

    1. Thank you, Diane! Ten days to the wedding, and so much else going on with and for Brother #4… I can’t wait to get back to Grandmother Elm for another visit! 🙂

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