I Miss Trees

Wherever we moved the number one requirement on my mother’s wish list for a house was TREES. There had to be trees! Lots of trees! The second item on that list was a good school district….. priorities, you know :-/

I guess I’ve inherited her love/need/desire/obsession with trees.

The problem is….here in the sunny, coastal, sub tropical Florida wetlands there aren’t many trees except palm trees….. and they don’t count.  The trees we do have were imported from elsewhere and the city has now embarked on a mission to eliminate ALL non native species.

What I’m saying is they’re plowing down all the trees and it’s freaking SUNNY here!

Shade! I need shade!

Did you know the difference in temperature between being in blaring direct sunlight or under the dappled leafy cooling goodness of shade can be up to 15°!

Now I ask you, would you rather be sitting outside in 90° with the sun sizzling your skin (and believe me, the sun really IS stronger here than it is up north) or would you be more likely to enjoy your outside pleasures in a lovely breezy 80°?

It’s a no brainer!

I totally understand the city wanting to remove invasive flora. And, in their defense, they are putting sun shades over some of the playgrounds in the parks. But that doesn’t help me! I know I’m being selfish. But I long for the shady loveliness of the parks I grew up in.

I miss Heckscher Park.

In my teenage years it was the place you went to ‘hang out’ with your friends. We’d laugh and talk, exchange intellectual ideas, maybe someone brought a guitar and we’d listen for hours. On Saturday nights you went to listen to your boyfriend’s band play onstage. There was always a cool breeze whispering through the trees on a summer evening. The smell of cannabis wafting through the night air...…..

As I grew older it was pleasant to walk around the lake and commune with nature. When I was pregnant it was good exercise. Then pushing a stroller it was a nice way to get out of the house. Later still, when the boys were old enough, there was the playground.

I never knew I would miss the sound the wind makes as it blows through the leaves and branches of deciduous trees.

I miss a nice park. I miss shade. I miss trees!

I have fond memories of summer days here.