The Tree with Special Blossoms

The following story is an excerpt from The Heritage of Etta Bend, a story my mother told me about her childhood in northeast Oklahoma. The “I” is my mother, Susie Latty Day. Mom told me this story and I wrote it to be included in The Heritage of Etta Bend in 1989. It was spring, […]

The Golf Ball Tree

Do golf balls grow on trees? It looks like this one did. My brother Tracy sent me this interesting photo a few years back. At a glance it looks as if the tree may be the first of its kind to sprout a golf ball.  I can’t tell if the tree is squeezing the golf […]

The Cottonwood

The Cottonwood At Grandfaher’s barn, close to the door, stood a giant cottonwood tree; How it weathered the wind and stood in the storm was a wonder and marvel to me. My grandfather said it was the strong roots, sinking down, holding fast to the ground; For the earth never lost it when wind tore […]

Small Lights

Small Lights

This is a dark, damp November morning. It’s the sort of morning when lights are most noticeable. My grandchildren put up and decorated the tree, decorated the mantel, and brightened the day. The best part was laughing and giggling together, putting new batteries in the Christmas tree train so that it had renewed life and […]

The Old Umbrella Oak

The Old Umbrella Oak

  A large oak stands in front of the house that belonged to my parents. It is so tall and its limbs spread so wide that anyone standing under it during a rain is sheltered, as if by a giant umbrella. The tree is old and has seen many changes. A busy street a few […]

The Many Merits of the Catalpa

The Many Merits of the Catalpa

One night in Oklahoma, several years ago, maybe twenty? a strong wind came through. Oklahoma’s strong winds are not to be trifled with and this one was no exception. It wasn’t a twisting, swirling wind of a tornado, but a straight, hard one. It had to be strong because it blew over a huge catalpa […]