Scarred and Twisted

Is something broken? Grab your neighbor and get to work! 

The apple trees here at Pudding Creek are old beauties. Scarred and twisted, they still produce abundant sweet fruit. The massive tree right next to the front entrance of the main building is an heirloom Rhode Island Greening. The shiny bright green fruit is ideal for baking a tasty apple pie or making crisp aromatic cider. 

Two of the neighbors remember playing under and in the tree as children. It wears the marks of the many bears that have feasted on its fruit over its 100+ year life. The tree is a friend to me too and offers shade and sustenance to many creatures large and small.

One morning before sunrise, Joe heard snapping and popping sounds. Daylight revealed a 6-foot-long split along one of the main trunks. The tree had cracked open, revealing a hollowed-out center and threatening to take down the whole thing. 

Thank goodness one of our neighbors has the skills and tools for tree surgery!

The neighbor, Joe, and I strapped the tree together, cinched the trunk in (like a corset!) with a metal chain, and cut down as much as possible to reduce the weight of its limbs. Then we got to work bolting the whole thing back together. The tree should heal, growing scar tissue along the crack. It probably won't bear fruit next year, but we have hope that it will survive and offer shade, sustenance, and beauty for many more years.

I am inspired by the possibility of repair and regeneration that happens when joining with a neighbor to fix something that has broken. It won't be the same ever again, but healing can and does happen all of the time. I couldn't do it alone, and probably you can't either. Thank goodness there are so many fabulous, caring, and knowledgeable people out there in the world. 

We can't set things right on our own. Let's get started together!