December 8, 2022 — One morning last weekend, when Steph and I were running errands in Traverse City, we got a call from Colebrook. “There is a man at our door asking if he can cut down a pine in our yard for his Christmas Tree.” Steph and I looked at each other with alarm. “I offered to help him cut it down and am looking for a saw, but I thought I better call you first.”
“Colebrook, your Dad and I are not going to let any trees get cut down on our property.” “Yeah, I agree,” replied our teenager. “I will tell him.” “Hey, Colebrook, I’m just curious,” I asked. “What tree is it?” “It’s in the cattail marsh,” he answered. I smiled and we hung up. I described the tree to Steph. “10 feet tall. Dark green. Medium needles. I don’t know what kind of tree it is though, a fir or spruce that grows in water.” We talked a while about it and researched it online. It was fun to get connected to ”our” little wild Christmas tree as we ran holiday errands.
And over the weeks, this little pre-holiday story has been endearingly told to family, friends and neighbors. Steph and I now look often at our humble little evergreen that stretches out from the muck all snugly crowded in by the cattails. Thanks to our visitor, this overlooked tree is now getting the special attention it deserves in the neighborhood. This quaint balsam fir that softly shouts out “Happy Holidays” to all who walk by our property.
