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Chronicle of a Death Foretold
The giant cottonwood by the big rock next to the river by the farmer's market lot got struck by lightning in the last storm we had and now it's just a big stump.
I remember about 20 years ago, when all the other cottonwoods got struck and fell from lightning, all at once, overnight, and the next morning we went around the parks looking at them. It's one of the memories about living here that stand out in my mind. So many down trees. Huge trees.
Where one fell 20 years ago, part of the fence got taken out, and they never put it back, and now people use that open area in the fence to get down to the river. I've always thought it was weird they never replaced that section of the fence. That section is right next to the tree that just fell.
That cottonwood was pretty much the sole survivor of that storm 20 years ago. And now it's gone. I haven't gone to look at it yet, but I've been told it's gone. It will be really hard for me to see it, so I haven't gone yet. I saw some documentary about the Sioux Indians and how the cottonwood was their sacred tree. And I always felt bad for that tree all alone, after all those others fell. And it did seem sacred, as sacred as any tree in a city can be anymore.
I told myself that when certain trees were gone, it would be a sign that I shouldn't live here anymore. I don't know why I said that to myself. More of a promise to myself. And within the last two years, all those trees that I had marked in my mind are gone. Most just cut down by a heartless mega-corp of a city. But a few were taken by natural causes, like the cottonwood.
I would walk by it every day to and from work. Every time I go downtown, I'd walk by it. It was definitely a landmark. It got struck a few years ago, but didn't fall, and they let it stand, even though it had a huge scar running down it. That is unusual for here. Anything imperfect, they try to destroy.
And I guess Salvation Army is closing and everything is half off. My husband just texted me to let me know. I am trying to get RID of things, not collect more, but maybe I'll go check it out. Even though it's really hard for me to leave the house right now.
3:42 PM - Saturday, Sept. 14, 2019
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