My Little Town, Part 3: Trees

The AtHome Pilgrim

Musings at a Slower Pace

AtHomePilgrim

Location: Philly area, Pennsylvania, USA

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Bio: "Nel mezzo del cammin di nostra vita," I find myself still asking some of the same questions I did when I was just a punk kid. The Big Things confuse me. Fortunately, though, many little things delight and amuse me, and some Big Things--my wife, our kids, our bird and bunny visitors, food, baseball--make me very, very happy. In my pilgrimage, I try to be guided by the wisdom of dear old Auntie Mame: "Life is a banquet!"

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NOVEMBER 23, 2011 9:43AM

Rate: 13 Flag

I couldn’t show pictures of our town without treating you to some of its trees, since the Arbor Day Foundation has named it a “Tree City” (which means it has a government body devoted to tending trees).

Now the trees have lost their foliage, but when I took these pictures at the end of October and beginning of November, things were still glorious. Some trees, of course, are more notable for their shape than their leaves. (And some are trees to be.) Shall we have a walk?

N-Oak 1

N-oak 2

N-Maple leaves1

N-maple leaves 2

N-maple leaves 3

N-vine up a hemlock

N-stately

N-small maple

N-small maple 2

N-Japanese mapls

N-oaks to be

N-weeper

N-multicolor

N-shape 1

N-shape 2

N-shape 3

N-wound

One corner house has a sky-high gingko that is paired with a Japanese maple of brilliant color and amazing shape.

N-gingko

N-Japanese maple and gingko

N-Japanese maple trunk

Of course, I saved the best for last. My absolute favorite tree is this ancient maple from the grounds of the Friends’ Meeting House. It has to be a couple hundred years old. The tree is a three-person giant (Mrs. P and I, pressed against the trunk and touching hands, could not reach all the way around the tree to touch hands on the other side). Enjoy the magnificence.

N-Friends maple 1

N-Friends maple 2

N-Friends maple 3

N-Friends maple 3A

N-Friends maple 4

N-Friends maple 5

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think of how many years that maple has been there and all it has seen, a tree city, bucks county, pa, newtown

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Comments

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"Shall we have a walk?" Always, yes!

While this is indeed a collection of gorgeous characters, I would particularly enjoy a few hours lying beneath that hemlocky-sprucey individual wearing the ivy overcoat. Hopefully, ivy is not a detriment to health.

Is your Big Maple a little jealous of that Ultimate Maple? Something to aspire to. Even trees need goals.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and Mrs. P!

greenheron

November 23, 2011 10:10 AM

patient as a tree

J.P. Hart

November 23, 2011 10:21 AM

I come from a part of Texas that is blanketed with Pine trees with only a very few hardwoods so these pictures of the beauty of your trees just blows me away. High on my Bucket List is a trip to your part of the country to see these fall colors first hand. That Maple is simply magnificent my friend.

David McClain

November 23, 2011 11:27 AM

I think trees make anything better. Except if they fall on your roof or car . . . but then, I always think of that as revenge of the trees.

Owl_Says_Who

November 23, 2011 11:42 AM

Gorgeous trees! Gingkos are my absolute favorite. : )
I sent Part 1 to my brother in Buck's County. I heard back that he shops at the hardware store there in your town and has played music in the Temperance Hall sometimes...thanks for these peeks of your (and my brother's) world!
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours...

Just Thinking...

November 23, 2011 01:30 PM

Makes me understand the compulsion to hug trees. Thank you Pilgrim for this wonderful exercise in virtual Leaf-Peeping!

And a Happy Thanksgiving to you and Mrs. P. and Sons 1 and 2.

rated

Shiral

November 23, 2011 03:37 PM

That just made my stomach relax. . .will be by this page again. Happy Thanksgiving to a true good soul.

Chicago Guy

November 23, 2011 05:49 PM

I enjoyed this walk too, Pilgrim. They were all gorgeous but that grand old thing has cast its spell on me too. Just imagine what that tree has lived through; the changes it has seen; the people that have passed it by; those who have sat underneath it; and, the young people who have climbed on it.

Thank you for this, Mr P.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family.

Little Kate

November 24, 2011 04:00 AM

Now that's local color! That maple is a marvel. You lucky Turkey.

Bellwether Vance

November 25, 2011 08:29 PM

oh. my.

i keep flipping back and forth, thinking 'the red one - no, the yellow one - no, the red ..." and that maple is like a freaking redwood, for pete's sake. wow.

femme forte

November 26, 2011 12:28 AM

I just finished ambulating through your delightful town trilogy! What a fun travelogue it is! I know some of the places that you have shown and it brought back good memories! I love that you did a full feature on favorite trees...some of my best friends are trees!! Thanks for sharing your town and your great photos!

Jersey Girl at Heart

November 26, 2011 12:09 PM

Hey fellow tree hugger..I am with you

Algis Kemezys

November 27, 2011 05:50 AM

Nice photography; reminded my strongly of my youth in New Hampshire, a climate not too different from that of Bucks County.

I'm plugging away on an autobiography, but most recently posted an open letter to Will Shortz, the NY Times crossword guru. Check it out and Merry Christmas!

Paul

Paul Hastings

December 18, 2011 12:05 PM

A lovely walk indeed. I love trees. There is a 200 plus oak tree in our yard. We recently had to have a few limbs trimmed and I couldn't watch. I felt like we were hurting it.