THE TREE AND I: A LOVE AND HATE RELATION

There is a big oak tree in front of our house about fifty steps from my front door. One of my neighbours, who used to be a professional gardener, thinks that the tree is about 80 yrs old. In oak-speak, it has just become an adult. In summer, it looks majestic with its large dark green crown. It looks happy and generous, lets the birds, squirrels, and sometimes cats play on and around it.

In winter, the branches are bereft of leaves and the tree looks shy and awkward in its nakedness.  It looks a bit ugly but I do thank it for being considerate and letting the sun pass through and reach my windows. If it remained fully covered with leaves our house would be very cold in winter in deed.  I would certainly be very cross with it. 

In autumn when the leaves turn yellow and golden, it looks beautiful but soon the leaves start falling and it becomes a hard job keeping the lawn and the driveway clean. It makes so much mess that I do feel like getting it cut down.

 Just on the heels of the thought of cutting this tree down comes a pang of guilt and shame. This tree was here long before my house was built and surely, it intends to be here long after this house and I are gone. What right have I got to kill it? We think that the tree is in our land so it belongs to us. This is only true in a system made by us humans, in our courts and in our land registry offices. The trees have not signed a treaty to abide by this set of rules. In fact we have not even bothered to ask them. What a colonial arrogance of gigantic proportion!

Surely, we both the tree and I are governed by the laws of Nature. As we both depend for our very existence on the Nature, we cannot but abide by its directives and edicts. And who do you think the Nature will favour: me or this oak tree? The tree has been here longer, does more to help the wider and local community and environment and is certainly much more considerate than me.

I am hoping that Nature is not like many human governing systems that have a revengeful and vindictive thought-police because at some  moments when the sky is cloudy and gloomy I still think ( just think) of getting rid of it to get some more light.