This post isn’t strictly about hiking, walking, jogging or cycling, but since I often perform these activities against trees as a backdrop, writing about these magnificent creatures surely isn’t completely off-topic.
The initial trigger for this post was a book by Peter Wohlleben that I recently completed, called The Hidden Life of Trees. In fact, I was fascinated so much by it that once I finished the English translation (which was the only available version on Libby from my library), I went on to read the original and listen to the audio book in German. For me, it’s that eye-opener which shows us that trees are, in many ways, not unlike us humans.
So when the century-old linden tree on Boxhagener Platz collapsed earlier this week (it was ill), I felt a tinge of sadness. On the other hand, J said he’s known of an ancient linden tree that recovered after losing a huge chunk of its trunk, so perhaps this one will be alright?
My optimism surged further thanks to the spring-like weather we’ve had in the last couple of days (although maybe I should be worried as the temperatures skyrocketed from -6 to 20 degrees C within a two-week window?). I also saw a new tree planted in the neighbourhood, and some neighbours confirmed they’ve seen a few others. That has to be a positive sign, surely?
Yet this morning a bunch of workers came to our backyard in their alarmingly bright & loud uniform with their alarmingly bright & loud machines, and started felling the trees at 9 AM sharp.
I was crushed.
I knew it was coming because we had received a letter from the real estate company that runs our building saying they’re going to build a new apartment block in our backyard. I also know about the housing shortage in Berlin, so the action is not completely unjustified. Still, I couldn’t help feeling emotional. I wish there was a way for the trees and the birds who call them home, to stay.
When you know that trees experience pain and have memories and that tree parents live together with their children, then you can no longer just chop them down and disrupt their lives with larger machines.
– Peter Wohlleben
Below is a video I took of our backyard, when all the trees were still intact, the day it snowed quite heavily in the first week of February. They say spring is the season of hope, so here’s me hoping that other trees in Berlin can live to see the season.
