Friday, April 28, 2006
What could be more a more durable tribute than a tree?
I confess to being a "tree-hugger"...
Not the "chain myself to a tree so that loggers can't earn a living" kind; (no one but my wife need suffer that vision) but the "aren't they beautiful and wouldn't it be great if my big, bald head were shielded from the sun's rays" kind. So imagine my dismay when I walked through Logan park in Philadelphia and discovered that all of the trees were removed... twig, trunk, and root.
Logan park and fountain is one of the most photographed and beloved spots in the city. I asked my wife to marry me there and have often sat beside the fountain under hundred-year old trees. It was a beautiful spot.
Now, it is a circle of grass with a few flowers and a fountain in the middle. Come August, it will be too hot to sit on the new benches.
This is part of our illustrious mayor's "beautification project." (May a pox fall on him and his administration.)
So, why do I bring this up?
Because of a delicious irony attached to the experience.
The trees are gone, but the plaque that explains their planting remains...
It reads:
"1914 1918, Tribute Trees, The trees along this parkway have been planted as a tribute of honor and gratitude to the men who served their country in the Great War."
Not the "chain myself to a tree so that loggers can't earn a living" kind; (no one but my wife need suffer that vision) but the "aren't they beautiful and wouldn't it be great if my big, bald head were shielded from the sun's rays" kind. So imagine my dismay when I walked through Logan park in Philadelphia and discovered that all of the trees were removed... twig, trunk, and root.
Logan park and fountain is one of the most photographed and beloved spots in the city. I asked my wife to marry me there and have often sat beside the fountain under hundred-year old trees. It was a beautiful spot.
Now, it is a circle of grass with a few flowers and a fountain in the middle. Come August, it will be too hot to sit on the new benches.
This is part of our illustrious mayor's "beautification project." (May a pox fall on him and his administration.)
So, why do I bring this up?
Because of a delicious irony attached to the experience.
The trees are gone, but the plaque that explains their planting remains...
It reads:
"1914 1918, Tribute Trees, The trees along this parkway have been planted as a tribute of honor and gratitude to the men who served their country in the Great War."
# posted by Gorgius Vegetius : 11:55 AM
