Timber, Old Friend

We have lived in this house almost 30 years and have always enjoyed the gigantic oak tree in our backyard. It stood the tallest of all the trees for miles. We have tried to estimate just how old it could be, but were never really sure. As years have passed, the tree began showing signs of age, dropping huge limbs, and revealing scars from lightning strikes. With much regret, we conceeded that the tree needed to come down before it fell on our house or a neighbor's house. So a company came Friday to take it down. The base is 7 feet across and the trunk to the first branch is 34 feet long as it lays on the ground. The neighbors said you could feel the vibrations in their houses as it hit the ground. A friend who is a logger estimates the tree to be 300 years old. Just think, Abraham Lincoln could have slept under its canopy more than once. I will miss the tree, but always remember its majesty. And from the looks of the mammoth trunk, I will be remembering seeing it as well!