A Tree- - - For Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Here is a poem by Joyce Kilmer, (1886 - 1918),  about a tree. My mother used to recite it to us, as children. It always intrigued me that she knew it by heart.

She may have been ironing clothes or rolling out crust for an apple pie while reciting the poem. It never ceased to amaze.


                                                                         Trees

I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the sweet earth's flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair:
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me
But only God can make a tree.


(Just for the record, that's about it for trees on this blog for awhile. Enough is enough.)

                          DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE POEM?

The Beauty of the Birch

As a child, I remember seeing tall, slender birch trees in the forest near a lake we used to go to.  Their distinguishing factor was their startling white trunks!  Tall and often slender, they seemed as regal as kings among the oaks and evergreens.

We also used to drink birch beer soda that has a very distinct taste, one I never really liked that much.

While living away from New England for many decades, I missed  seeing these stately trees with their thin, papery white bark. Now that this area of the country is my home again, I can, once again, enjoy seeing beautiful birch trees.

The Internet's Wikipedia has quite a bit of information about birch trees that was very new to me.  For instance, the fragrant twigs of silver birches are used in sauna baths to relax muscles. 
Also, in Germany, Central and Eastern Europe and Russia, according to Wikipedia, the people decorate churches and homes with birch branches on the first of Pentacost .  Pentacost, by the way, in Christian tradition, commemorates when the Holy Spirit appeared to Christ's disciples after he rose from the dead.

Diuretic tea can be made from the leaves of the tree as well as extracts for dyes and cosmetics. 
Wikipedia also noted that birch burns well as firewood. It has been used to make cabinets, canoes, and wigwams.  It's also the national tree of Russa.

Here's one last tidbit of folklore pertaining to birch trees. In Germany, on May Day, young men put decorated birch trees in front of the homes of girls they are interested in romantically.

As for me, I just like looking at them.

DO YOU HAVE BIRCH TREES WHERE YOU LIVE? IF NOT, HAVE YOU EVER SEEN ONE?