Demise of the Holiday Tree

Picture taken early November 2016

A seed somehow found its way into a crack in a lifeless concrete world.  Overcoming adversity, it sprouted, found sustenance and grew into this little tree.   I noticed it the first time I drove by, immediately seeing a picture worth taking and a metaphor worth celebrating.  Obviously, many others saw its worth.  The little tree was eclectically and excessively adorned with Christmas decorations.    Taking a picture would’ve required stopping, or turning around, and I just drove on.

The tree was on a road I traveled often and over the months I became more attached to it.  As Valentine’s Day approached, red hearts appeared.    On the 4^th of July, it was covered in patriotic symbols and decked out in red, white, and blue.    A few weeks before Thanksgiving, Hyesuk snapped this picture of the partially decorated tree as we drove by, capturing fall colors and a homemade turkey at the pinnacle.

A few days before this past Christmas, I’d committed myself to finally stopping and taking a proper picture.   My anticipation turned into confusion as I drove by the barren sidewalk.   The tree was gone.   As I continued on, many thoughts and questions went through my mind.  I’ve recreated a few of them today.  Did a malicious vandal destroy it just to hurt others?  Was it viewed as a safety hazard and removed to protect us?  Was the person who cut it down just doing their job?   Did someone threaten to take legal action because they didn’t agree with the expression of personal beliefs on public property?   Regardless of the reason, the tree was gone.

Remains of the tree's memorial on January 2, 2016

I viewed the little tree mostly as an interesting oddity.  Many others were significantly more attached and hurt by its loss.  A constantly changing memorial  soon appeared.  Some reacted with anger and protest.  I identified with a "NOT COOL DUDE! sign.  Some expressed their grief with candles and small tokens.

Picture taken January 2, 2016

Driving by on New Year’s Eve, I noticed this tree on the other side of the road. Unfortunately, the festive hat and most of the decorations were missing when we made a special trip for pictures.  Seeing the newly turned soil at the base sprouted the seed of hope motivating our visit.  Maybe the tree had triumphed again and just moved on to a better location.

Crossing the road to take pictures of the memorial, saw my small seed meet a predictable fate.

Exiting the mall where we'd parked, the ending for this blog was written.  My remaining thoughts will go unspoken.