THE SLICING & DICING OF AN OLD GROWTH REDWOOD STUMP
www.groeschen.com
September 14, 2006
ARCATA, CALIFORNIA, I finally have a moment to reflect on some of the summer. In January, an acquaintance of mine, who likes to call himself Druid Ozone sent me a message about these Sitka Spruce trees ripped from the Earth by the wind in Trinidad, Ca. I felt compelled to head to the North Coast Redwoods to check out these New Years Eve Storm Trees.
Six months went by, it was now July, I was ready to go, however, right before leaving Whidbey Island, as coincidence would have it, a big stump and house building project in the town of Cutten, California, about 30 miles from the spruce trees in Trinidad came into my life. In the photo sent to me, the stump in Cutten was an old growth redwood one, cut years ago, perhaps in the early 1900's. It looked like a face with the old spring boards marks as the eyes, the bush growth on top as hair. About 13' high by 11' around. The mystery was going to be released, I was curious and I was called.
Greg...the guy in red, construction worker.
Off I went, leaving the peaceful island, immediately in Seattle, the radiator overheated. I changed the thermostat, a momentary fix. Stopping 60 miles down the road in Castle Rock, water poured out from the water pump. I put more water in, it held. An old man said I would make it, just kept filling the radiator whenever I stopped.
Here I was in Cutten at the old stump. The mystery in it was not for me to decipher into wood art. The owners wanted it outta there now, the stump would be removed by Eric, the neighbor of the stump people.
I met Eric and discovered he has some redwood tree controversy. North Coast Journal. In conversation he mentioned he is hired to remove tree activists out of the ancient growth redwoods. But I said "you did not get Julie Butterfly out." He said, "I went up there early in the tree sit, she did not want to come out. And later she got too much media attention".
I was captivated reading Julie Butterfly Hill's book Luna, it was my introduction to the Redwoods battle back in 2000. It brought great insights on what was going on in the area between the enviromentalists and the loggers. Julia's book Luna Eric did not succeed with extracting Julia Butterfly out of the tree. Meanwhile, back to the stump in Cutten, he rigged, sliced and diced, and got the stump out, stopping in the middle to let a salamander go.
Eric dug out the roots and moved them, leaving them, they were not valuable or of use to him.
I felt an attraction to the root pieces. To me it had some value, if only just for the poetic resonance, it was the foundation of a great tree.
I was at the forming of the foundation of the house when the guy in charge of it, Greg, smashed a bee with his framing hammer which landed on the boards next to him. After suggesting he move it to another spot and it was not good karma to kill it, he said "I do not believe in karma" using his hammer to smash it into the forms.
I left the weird house building scene.
The stump use to be a giant redwood tree, reduced to a stump, to all traces removed leaving a hole in the ground, only to be filled with dirt and a concrete drive way.
The wise Indian Saint, Ammachi says this about roots..."The mind must hold onto something. This is not possible without faith. When a seed is sown, its upward growth depends upon the roots growing deeply into the soil. Without faith, spiritual growth is not possible."
I was now ready to go on to the original reason I wanted to be in the North Coast, to check on the trees in Trinidad ripped out of the ground, roots and all by the wind.
The water pumped was fixed on my truck, I didn't even mention the burning of the clutch, but that was fixed as well. I received a call, a place in Trinidad found my wallet, my ID, my debit card. I was in better shape to see the these climate changed trees than two weeks prior.
hang on to your journal entries...next stop an autobiography... this is more than I could have ever expected..thanks for the inspiring words of wisdom...a.a.
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hang onto your journal entries..next stop an autobiography...I remember readingthe book Luna...we must be kindred spirits...thanks for sharing your words of wisdom...a.a.
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