Friday, May 16, 2008

post three-oh-one

that's the number of this post. it's ironic that today im going to give a talk on tree wisdom at the forest folk festival in oxford, ct. three and one, in combination, have always been magical numbers to me.

my birthday is the 31st, i have 3 girls and 1 boy. baby jake was born on 13th, my eldest daughter's birthday is 10-30. my father's birthday is 03-01. threes and ones appear frequently in various combinations in other places throughout my life, including the three holly trees which were planted on the day i was born.

it pains me immeasurably to think that i am the one who will sign the documents that take them out of my family forever, that may, on some level, seal their death warrants. only two of the original three are left, and that missing tree was the prettiest of them all. i will miss them greatly when they are gone.

when i was a little girl, my favorite story of all was called The Little House, by Virginia Lee Burton. i can still hear my mother reciting the story to me, as we turned the pages over and over. it's a story about a little house built originally far out in the country, around which a big city grows.

the story of the little house ends happily, for the great great grandson of the man who originally built the little house comes and finds it, and moves it, far out again, into the country. there will be no such happy ending for my grandmother's house, nor, i fear, my holly trees.

the realtor called the other day - there's a couple interested who've come to see the house three times now, and the third time, they brought an architect. he has high hopes an offer will be coming soon.

my only wish is that they let my hollies live.

and furthermore, the war must end. blessed be.

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