"Trees!!"

In my old age (Lord Willing, I'll officially be a senior citizen anywhere in America 4 months from today), I've been gradually realizing how much I love TREES.

For the longest time, I would never ADMIT I loved trees because my DAD (who was not a nice man) loved them passionately, and one of my goals in life was NOT to be like my father (twisted, huh?? But before you'd judge me, you had to know my DAD, Lol!!)

Anyway, on Christmas Day this year dad will be gone ten years, and it's taken me ABOUT that long to incrementally admit I love trees like HE did.

I first began to realize how much I love trees 5 years ago, when we drove up to NORTH Jersey (where we had moved from the previous fall) JUST to see the famous Cherry Blossoms in Branch Brook Park, in April.

Clearly, I also have a passion for BIRCH trees...I had the Brown Thrasher I drew for the paper this week sitting in one (above). 

This photo of Birches is presently the Cover Photo for my MAIN Facebook page (Public Domain photo.)

 And, in the kind providence of God, our new house is on a street with "Birch" in the name, even!!

  Come to think of it, some of my POEMS these past 4-5 years have been about trees, ALSO....I think they are on my OTHER Facebook page, called "Writing from Whiting."

Yesterday when I turned on my computer I saw the screen saver in the photo at the top of this blog.  I absolutely LOVE the fall foliage......"FALLIGE" as I call it!!  We don't see many trees that change colors down here where I live now, it's called THE PINELANDS for good reason...it's mostly Pines, with relatively few DECIDUOUS trees.  (That's ONE thing I miss about up north....trees with leaves that actually change colors!!  Down here in central Jersey it stays mostly GREEN in the fall, which is a bummer, but in WINTER when the other trees are "leavesless," the unchanging green of the Pines is an advantage.)

Anyway, because I miss the changing colors here in The Pinelands, I took that photo of my LOVELY computer screen yesterday.

And speaking of PINES, as I mentioned here on October 4th, the weekly paper printed my letter...

....and the store in question put up signs in their windows responding to my letter...

Their own website, and the TOWN'S, said they WERE leaving before I wrote the letter but maybe they changed their minds, who knows.  

Anyway, WRITING THAT LETTER complaining about the two amazing pines they cut down was something ELSE that helped me realize how much I love trees....and not be afraid to say so.

It was my open admission to myself that I still have SOMETHING in common with my dad, whose first and last names I bear, but whose character I reluctantly, but correctly, rejected.

Above: the Southern Pine Beetle caused one of the huge pine trees in our Church Grove to be taken down this week.  Someone made a cool CROSS out of part of it, and it's there, out in the Grove behind the building.  Now THAT is a good reason to fell a very large, ancient tree (not to make a STORE) and THIS is a neat way to use PART of the tree, showing good stewardship!!

And oh, I forgot....I'm even using TREES as an analogy for my Sunday School class this fall (above)!!