Monday, February 15, 2010

Mother Tree

A massive old white pine on the hillside, she stands regally on the far perimeter of the Two Hundred Acre Wood, the first old friend I look for when we round the final bend before turning in at the gate.

Tree's artfully curved form reminds me of a tall ship in full sail, and that is appropriate, given that her stature and shape and flowing branches have been shaped by the north wind. I am not allowed to wander these fields this winter, but I stood in lane this morning and bowed deeply to tree, happy just to see her again and watch her dance in the wind.

The sky was so brilliantly blue this morning that it dazzled the eyes. When the wind hushed for a moment now and again, I could hear the resident Great Horned Owls calling to each other from the grove by the beaver pond, and I came home happy to think that there are nesting "hornies" in the neighborhood again this year - probably raising their brood in the same tree they have been using for the last three years. They sounded like this.

2 comments:

Meredith said...

Beautiful, sacred tree. I'm glad you had communion with her, and I'm sorry to hear that you're not allowed in those fields again this season. That's too bad, as it sounds like you have the proper respect to spend time with nature!

bev said...

There was a similar white pine in the field across from our farm - the farm which I sold last summer. I love the white pine as it seems such a part of eastern Ontario. Although there are trees that I like very much here in the west, none of them speaks to me in the way that the white pines do. It's those long wind-swept branches.