#no wind

So I go. And, before I reach the giant tree, I realize something is wrong. There are huge branches lying on the ground.

I freaked out that someone tried to take it down and ran towards, and what I found was the half of the tree, missing, lying on the ground. But it wasn’t cut. It broke off, and fell.

I was first overwhelmed with shock that I will never be able to climb this tree again, all my climable branches were lying on the ground. I used to climb that tree to watch sunsets and read books on; it was my favourite huge tree and I expected it to live on long after I’m gone. But then I got very concerned that this giant tree could just, break in half and fall, it was more than 2 meters wide! What the hell happened? It didn’t even look sick or rotten!

After lots of thinking, I figured it must have been because it had three leaders. Leader is the main trunk of the tree, this tree split into three trunks very early on, grew gigantic, and eventually what can happen is that the leaders don’t manage to achieve good balance, there’s bark trapped between them and they’re not connected by anything so one part is likely to break off and fall. I also noticed there was some rot inbetween trunks, even though the tree itself looked healthy. Trunk flare was also underground, and I know it shouldn’t be. The roots themselves were pulled out where the tree fell. They were not deep at all, it was like that trunk was barely holding onto the ground.

Figuring all this out, I stayed there to mourn. I sang songs to the tree and sat on the fallen branches and stroked them with affection. The fallen part of the tree felt serene against my skin; it was still alive, but at peace with dying off.

I figured the rest of the tree must be much more stressed, and I decided to feel it out; there were still 2 trunks left upright, unclimbable, but standing. I touched their bark and I couldn’t handle what I felt; that tree was not only stressed, but terrified. The tree wasn’t mourning the huge loss, it was expecting to die.

I didn’t see it at first, but the tree likely wouldn’t survive this. That big part falling off set the entire balance off; the remaining two are likely to fall as well. There isn’t anything that can be done because the tree is so huge, I don’t think any support would stop it from falling. It’s devastating.

I’m writing this to express my grief, as well as shock that something like this could happen, to a huge, healthy-looking, gorgeous tree, just because it had three leader trunks. It’s definitely more than hundred years old, and I consider it a big loss. It also shook me that within one week, two trees I considered safe to climb, were not, in fact, safe. I could have been on that big tree when it fell and I wouldn’t get out of that one with just an injury. Even being around that tree now is dangerous and I wouldn’t have known had I not touched it.

I know its weird I’m picking up tree feelings, but lets not get into that. I’ve rewatched the entire tree care documentary series and understand that the only way to prevent this is to early stop two leader trunks, because they’re inherently dangerous. So if you have a tree, big or small, that doesn’t have a regular, one-trunk leader but two or more, please eye it suspiciously, for me. Check if there’s bark or rot inbetween trunks. See if its dangerous for half of it to fall. And mourn my favourite tree with me. It woke me up more than my recent tree-falling injury.

Five O'Clock Shadows

» city park: reflection III