A brief history of trees
WHETHER it be as a result of the forced isolation of lockdown, a growing concern for the environment or a general need to slow down and appreciate the simpler things in life, many of us have found ourselves reconnecting with Nature. For my part, a conscious effort to extend my regular walks to improve both my physical and mental health has led me to look at the fields and countryside around me with fresh, enquiring eyes—partly inspired by a quote I’d read from the late football manager Brian Clough, of all people: ‘Look at them… Aren’t they beautiful! People don’t appreciate beauty these days. They look at everything but they don’t really see. Who really looks at trees and sees their shapes and colours? They’re magic! That’s what it’s all about!’
Forcing myself to ‘really see’ as I looked again at the familiar trees surrounding me, I started to think about what these silent observers of history would have witnessed over the years. It’s worth pointing out that I’m no expert in trees and identifying species—I can recognise an oak leaf and tell a weeping willow from a silver birch, but I wouldn’t trust myself much beyond that. Rather, I’m an enthusiastic amateur, happy to be lost in quiet reverie under their branches.
It surprised a few of my friends, therefore, when I announced I was writing a book called . ‘Do you know much about them?’ came the reasonable question. ‘Not really,’ I confessed.
