Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Only God Can Make a Tree ...

This is my second of a series of photographic posts I plan to record on my blog for organizational purposes. I hope to use them to create a scrapbook someday.

This post features a collection of my "Tree Pictures" which were taken in Vicksburg and surrounding area, in Natchez, and on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

[You can click on the pictures to enlarge them, if you'd like]

The "Friendship Oak"

This majestic live oak tree (located on the front lawn of the University of Southern Mississippi campus in Long Beach, Mississippi) is over 500 years old. To put that into perspective, the Friendship Oak was a sapling when Columbus set sail for the New World. If only it could talk ! Can you imagine the stories it could tell?

According to legend, those who step into its shadows must "remain friends throughout their lifetime."

Standing 50 feet tall, the tree's trunk is 5 feet 9 inches in diameter, and its foliage covers 156 feet!

An almost reverent feeling washed over me as I stood under this magnificent tree that has survived the wrath of countless hurricanes, and I hope it will continue to thrive for many years to come.

Here are some of the other old "survivors" of Katrina ...


100-Year-Old Oaks in a Natchez City Park ...



Fern- and Moss-Covered Oak on the Natchez Trace ...

An old Walnut Tree at the Windsor Ruins near Port Gibson, Mississippi. [To read the story behind the Ruins, click here] ...

A majestic old oak near the Windsor Ruins ...

Gingko Tree in Vicksburg National Military Park ...

Magnolia trunk, limbs, and roots.
[Also in the Military Park]


Kudzu-covered trees near Vicksburg ...

This tree was outside our mountain cabin in Blue Ridge, Georgia, and our three-year-old granddaughter Avery Grace observed that it looks like a "bear's face" ...


An old oak standing high on the bluffs overlooking
the Mississippi River at Natchez ...

And last, but not least, are these two pictures I took of the roots of a huge old oak tree in a residential section of Natchez. Beauty is where you find it, I guess, and I love those twisted old roots ...


As you can see, I love trees and never pass up an opportunity to photograph the ones that catch my eye. I love this poem by Joyce Kilmer, too ...

Trees

I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth's sweet flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.

9 comments:

The Quintessential Magpie said...

Janie, I love trees, too, and these pictures are particularly wonderful! I'm so glad the Friendship Oak survived that nightmare of a storm, and that these other trees have survived to whisper to us down the years.

Thanks for sharing...

XO,

Sheila :-)

Alice said...

thanks for sharing these magnificent tree photos! it's a shame that our government in Hong Kong really has no clue on how to protect trees :<

Anonymous said...

Morning Janie! All my favorites in your last couple posts! Cows, trees and adorable Avery! I feel like that 500 year old tree lately! Sagging on the ground!!!lol You are going to have one outstanding scrapbook!!! It should be published!!! Have a great day - Sincerely, Jeannette

Stacey said...

I love trees too. You definitely showed some huge old ones. :) Thanks for sharing those.

Have you seen the Survivor Tree in Oklahoma City? It stood even after the Murrah bombing. It's beautiful.

Salmagundi said...

The trees are fascinating! Here in our cold, semi-arid climate, trees never get that huge. But, then again, we get to see more of our beautiful, blue sky! Sally

Beth at Aunties said...

Grandeur and majestic is how I view these magnificent trees. Yes it is true only God could make trees!
Trees and their roots fascinate me also. Your pictures are beautiful! I enjoyed this post and loved the poem. I liked what you said if the Majestic tree could only talk. What rich history she has witnessed. The pictures from your cabin are gorgeous! Tell sweet Avery I could see the bear head also:-) Have a wonderful day!

Steve Buser said...

I like the massive size of the first oak. This a great collection of tree shots and close ups of features.

Unknown said...

Hi Janie,
This is a great idea for a post! You have some beautiful photos of tress! I love the friendship tree on the Gulf Coast!

Diane

Laura @ the shorehouse. said...

Your photos this week are just amazing! I love the story of the Friendship Oak...I imagine that tree has been in its share of pictures, too, in its long lifetime.

I love the trees with the amazingly complicated roots. When I first went to the Virgin Islands and saw a Banyan tree, I was tripping over myself to take photos...every root...every angle...They were (are!) amazingly beautiful to me.

Thanks for sharing your trees!