From January:
As I was doing my run/walk around my neighborhood recently, I was noticing the many hues in nature that fill the landscapes of yards I pass each morning. Many who visit Central Texas this time of year are surprised by the many colors that make an appearance in the late Fall and early Winter here. The fall colors are not quite as plentiful as those found in other parts of the country, however we still get the maroon browns, burnt oranges, reds, yellows and a variety of pinks. Currently, my knock out roses are blooming still with reds and pinks and the bright red berries against the green leaves of the Texas Yaupon trees are perfectly timed around Christmas, like they were made for easy outdoor decorating for the holidays. Another thing that visitors notice is how green this part of Texas stays even in winter. Some trees do lose their leaves here and many grasses go dormant and turn to a brownish, dull color, but the Texas Live Oak is still a vibrant green because it is an evergreen tree.
The Live Oak figures prominently in Texas history lore. Since it only loses it leaves in bags-full in the spring, it provides shade for children to play, late afternoon meetings of all sorts and to protect oneself from the oppressive Texas sun July through September. According to folklore, in the 1830s, Stephen F. Austin met with Native Americans to negotiate a boundaries treaty under Treaty Oak here in Austin and Sam Houston rested under the tree after leaving the Governorship. Another popular tale describes Santa Anna's surrender to a wounded Sam Houston under an oak tree after the Battle of San Jacinto which eventually led to the creation of the Republic of Texas. On a very personal note, it was the very grand, 120+ year old Live Oak tree in the back yard of my current home that was a huge influence on my decision to purchase this place a little over 12 years ago.
The large tree in my backyard reminds me of the tree in Forrest Gump that Forrest and Jennie would spend hours climbing and sitting on the branches talking and sitting quietly thinking about life. As a child, my 7 siblings and I spent a lot of time in the tree branches of a similar tree that grew in our front yard. We LOVED that tree and I very much wanted for my daughter to have similar memories. She also spent many hours with friends, climbing the branches and swinging on the swings that were attached to one of the largest and most horizontal branches. Sadly, the tree developed a grave problem.
A little over two years ago, I noticed that the leaves of our tree were not a plentiful as usual in the winter but still a nice color of green. In the spring, like all Live Oaks, it lost all its leaves followed by waves of green pollen that filled the air, pools, covered all cars and outdoor furniture with a thick layer of green pollen, then the leaves started to come back. I thought the mighty oak had recovered then I noticed that fewer leaves came back and they did not look as healthy as they had in the past. I hired an arborist to come check it out and she sadly gave me the prognosis that the tree had oak wilt. This 120+ year old tree had survived pushing its roots through solid, visible bedrock around its trunk and years of off and on drought to live so long but this horrible fungus-related tree disease was going to take it down.
Oak Wilt is one of the most destructive tree diseases in Texas. It is an infectious disease caused by a fungus which invades and disables the water-conducting system. Texas Live Oaks are most seriously affected due to their tendency to grow with a vast, interconnected root system that allows movement of the fungus among adjacent trees. Live oaks defoliate and die within 3-6 months following the initial appearance of symptoms. Occasionally, a few live oaks in an oak wilt center may escape infection and remain unaffected by the disease even though the large, dense group of trees (called motts) have interconnected roots.
The fungus is transmitted by small beetles that emerge and visit fresh wounds of healthy oaks during the months of February to May. To prevent the spread, during certain times of the year, you are not supposed to cut/trim any limbs of the trees. Of course, wounds on trees can occur in various ways, so tree trimming is not the only point of entry for the beetle. Once one tree is infected, to prevent he spread of the disease, a fungicide in big, keg barrels is used around other oaks and the diseased tree is removed.
The day the crew came to take the tree down hit me like a ton of lead. When my landscaper came to check on the progress and how I was doing, I broke down sobbing in her arms. The tree held so many memories for me and my daughter and there is no telling how much history surrounded it. In a few short hours, the 120+ year old tree would be no more.
In some ways, I equate the current climate in our society and political arena to the spread and devastation caused by Oak Wilt. In this scenario, the fungus/oak wilt is intolerance, divisiveness, lies and hate that is affecting all areas of our lives. President Trump is not the first 'beetle' to burrow himself into the mighty tree of our Democratic Republic, however with his words and actions, he has fanned the flames that spread this diseases and it feels like it will forever damage our country.
Who was the first 'beetle' to strike the first blow to our 243 year old governmental tree and weaken so many parts of our government and sow the seeds of doubt and divisiveness? Could it have been Doug Coe, Richard Nixon, Roger Ailes? Or might it have been Rush Limbaugh or Alex Jones? There are 'beetles' that seem to have infected several branches of our government like Bill Barr in the DOJ, Brett Kavanaugh in the Judicial Branch, Mitch McConnell in the Legislative Branch and of course, Trump, in the Executive branch. The poison of lies, deceit and hate started out being subtly spread and now are on a full-on attack to our country.
Many have stepped forward to inject the healing fungicide into our government to prevent further spread of this fungus of hate including Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Shumer and Adam Schiff. Outside the Legislative Branch we could include Marie Yovannovitch, Fiona Hill, Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, Bill Taylor and George Kent. Their testimonies at the Impeachment Trial were one quick blast to the system to attempt to get those who have sworn to protect our Constitution to stand up and follow through on that oath. Is it too little too late?
Outside the government are some who also work to expose the truth and work to save our county by putting country over party. Rick Wilson, Bill Kristol, Matthew Dowd, Ana Navarro, Karine Jean-Pierre, Nicolle Wallace and Molly Jong-Fast to name a few of the many. We can be appreciative of one of the groups recently formed called the Lincoln Project whose mission is to defeat President Trump and Trumpism at the ballot box. All of these patriots are working to inject the fungicide at a dosage that will halt and hopefully stop the spread of the disease that would render our Democratic Republic obsolete and turn it into a relic and a shell of its original self just like the tree in my backyard.
Through the Impeachment process, the Legislative Branch is working to show that no one is above the law. A serious question is whether or not the institutions/branches of government are strong enough or has the 'fungus' already weakened them so much that the attempts are futile. Some defending the president say that the Impeachment is a coup or an attempt to overturn the election in 2016. I whole-heartedly disagree. In sporting events AND elections, when one cheats or lies, there should be natural consequences. When the depth of deceit was fully disclosed during Watergate hearings, Nixon resigned instead of being impeached. When it was fully revealed that Lance Armstrong used performance-enhancing drugs to win in cycling, he was stripped of 7 of his Tour De France and banned from cycling. Similarly, American Athlete, Marion Jones, was formally stripped of the 5 medals she won at the Sydney games in 2000. No one is, nor should be, above the law and when lies and cheating for personal benefit is exposed, they should expect the natural consequences to come into play. All the evidence to date points to the fact that President Trump has lied and cheated for his own personal gain. The extent of this is still unknown yet it is time for those who continue to defend him to make amends and do the right thing.
While our 120+ year old tree did not survive the pernicious oak wilt, in its place I have cultivated a garden that provides flowers, fruits and vegetables for us to enjoy. The Treaty Oak in downtown Austin survived the 1989 vandalism by herbicide poison but two thirds of the tree died and more than half of the crown was pruned away. It still stands today, obviously somewhat lopsided, and producing acorns again. The fungus of division, lies and hate in our country and of factions in the government need to be stopped if we are to save the 240+ year old tree of our Constitution and our Democratic Republic. What our country will look like once the oak wilt/division is eradicated, is anyone's guess. It can still bear fruit for years to come, as long as those in power will stand up to defend it.
