Coaxing Back Her Youth

My chickens are sitting in the shade.  It's not hot out.  They'd prefer a warm, sunny spot, but there are none to be found in their pen.  Poor chickens!

Hidden in the mass of ivy, blackberries, and nightshade is an apple tree.

Along side our property is a city right-of-way that is disguised as a drainage ditch.  Recent habitat restoration work has cleared much of the blackberry bramble and other invasive vines from its steep banks.  But an ancient, forever-untended apple tree has wandered up in all directions, bound and gagged by ivy and nightshade.  This mass/mess shades my chickens--and my garden beds.  Additionally, there's still some beauty in that apple tree that longs to be uncovered like an old hag in a folk talk who is transformed into a lovely princess.

Seen sideways, the tree shows a trunk.

The Things I get to do today are watch my arborist skillfully begin finding the dignity of this grand dame hidden under the vines and bring him coffee to keep warm in the gusting wind.  It will take several days, as he removes the wrist-sized ropes to find the trunks, and then calls forth the most elegant shape possible from their configuration.  As I watch, it is comforting to know that the demolition and debris are all part of the process, will be tended in their own time, and that all is well, even now.  Creative destruction it is called--an essential piece in moving toward balance, beauty and elegance.

Arborist removing chocking vegetation and beginning to shape the tree

The chain saw snarls through random arms, leaving those whose reach has hope of some purpose.  I love the process.  It has the flavor of organizing a room, rearranging the furniture, cleaning out a closet. Things get oh-so-much-worse before they get better.  And the better is bliss.  Join us for the ride there. (To be continued.)