Behind the Ironic Column

The view is going.  Well, maybe not going exactly but rapidly evolving to its summer status.  I live in an apartment building and one of the reasons I chose this particular apartment is that there are trees right outside the building – big trees much higher than my 5th floor apartment.  And they’re deciduous trees, not the firs and pines that were outside the house I had before I moved here. 

In winter I can look across the Park Blocks and down the street and see other apartment and office buildings – as well as my favorite Christmas lights – the tree on the stop of the Standard building.  For the last few weeks that view has been steadily sliding behind a curtain of green and gold – leaves unfurling, flowers and seeds forming.  I can almost see the leaves getting larger – and if I step out on my balcony I definitely can feel the pollen in the air.  I love trees but tree pollen tends to have a bad effect on my body – so I’ll be somewhat less congested when the leaves are completely out and summer is settling in.  And by then I won’t even be able to see across the street. 

Not that I mind – I always wanted a tree house as a kid, but we weren’t allowed to have one.   Somebody might fall out and break something.   So we created our hiding places under the sweeping branches of weeping willows that came down and touched the ground – we weren’t climbing in the tree (or at least that’s what we claimed) but were hidden inside it.  It was a great place for a hot summer day.   And in the darker woods there were tree resting places – cavities carved out on the bank around exposed tree roots.  I don’t remember what those trees were, and we didn’t live there very long, but I’m sure they were deciduous.  Probably oak or maple since we had a lot of those in western North Carolina where I grew up.   One spot in particular was a wonderful place to hide out, read a book, and otherwise escape from normal household life.   It had just enough room for a small person to nestle into it and was lined with mosses.  It was quiet and peaceful and, if you were lucky and stayed still, birds would flit in and carry on their activities as if you weren’t there. 

When I lived in DC, I lived in an apartment that looked out over trees – Rock Creek Park to be exact – but they weren’t as close as the trees in my new neighborhood.  The first summer I lived here I had a demanding job – that demanded most of my daylight hours even during the long summer days.  I’ve given that up and hope to spend a span of time this summer just enjoying those trees – and my equivalent of a tree house.

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