There had been other posts (see July 2008 and May 2009) about our cherry tree, so here is some perspective and an update.
We acquired the cherry tree in 1997. It had belonged to my Uncle Clarence. I have lost several aunts and uncles in the past year, but Uncle Clarence passed away 14 years ago this date. He was a Lutheran pastor and taught many lessons on faith, but I remember him more for his teachings on nature, the two topics dove-tail wonderfully into one other. He was the kind of man who would take a bunch of us out hiking on a nature preserve and give lectures on whatever flora and fauna we might encounter. He was a beekeeper and taught us about the amazing life of bees…humans have so much to learn about life from bees! He also was a member of NAFEX…North American Fruit Explorers. He actually grew kiwi in his backyard in Kirkwood, MO. He grew them on a trellis that he would lay down on the ground in the winter and cover up with bags of leaves for insulation. I have a vivid memory of him (standing precariously with a walker) collecting magnolia seed pods to see if he could get them to germinate, nevermind that he may not live to see a tree grow from those seeds. He was passionate about grafting and he had an orchard. Evidently, he also had a cherry tree in a bucket that had yet to be planted when he died on this date back in 1997. Aunt Mickey gifted us with the cherry tree. We planted it in a half barrel and set it out on the brick patio. We always intended to take it out to our farm to plant it permanently but 14 years and life in general passed by.
Last year when we sold our home, we told the new owners that the tree on the patio would not be left behind. We planned to wait until winter when it would be a better time to move a tree. They agreed for us to come later to claim the tree. In our private conversations, we wondered about the tree. How had it managed all this time so happily in a half barrel? Perhaps the barrel bottom had rotted out and the roots had grown down through the morter between the bricks? Would it survive a move? Should we leave it behind or risk uprooting it?
In the end, we decided that we could not bear to leave it behind. Late in February we went back to the old place. We had a saw and a two wheel cart and a bunch of bungie cords. Once the barrel was tipped over, it completely fell apart. The roots had indeed grown down in between the bricks. They were sawed off and what remained of the root ball and tree was scooped up and loaded into the van. We planted it the next day, a late gray Saturday in February. I trimmed all the branches off to give the roots less tree to support. Then it was left up to faith and hope to survive.
This weekend is a fitting time to check on the progess of the tree.
What we are left with is faith and hope.
