Mourning the loss of the neighbor's trees

Things must have looked different from the other side of the fence, where the trees bearing these overhanging branches were rooted until Saturday, when our neighbor, on whose property they were growing, cut them down. I've heard of people complaining because they have to rake leaves dropped from their neighbor's trees, but we never did. We absolutely loved these trees.

I can't bear to take a picture - without these branches, it looks entirely different. On the other side of the fence now there is nothing but bare dirt - soon to be seeded with grass. Give me a beautiful tree instead of grass any day. These particular branches were beautiful in all seasons - dogwood, sassafras, sweet gum and magnolia. There were blooms in Spring, warm colors in Fall, and cool green shade in Summer. They sheltered our bench, making it a cozy spot to sit and watch the birds at the feeder across the small patch of lawn. Wind chimes hung from the branches. They shaded the hosta so that it grew and thrived this year. I loved looking at them from my sun room window.

To make ourselves feel a little better we planted a dogwood yesterday afternoon. It will be a long time before it provides any shade, and its branches will never hang over the fence.

We'll adjust to the new view, I know. I think we may grow some Caroline Jessamine or some Confederate Jasmine along the edge of the fence to soften it. But I suspect I'll shed a few more tears over the trees that were cut down before I get used to it.