There’s a hole in our hearts and a hole in the sky at the north end of town.
A grand old ponderosa was just cut down by the city. Apparently they deemed it necessary to remove this “hazard” after ten years of study.
Did they study the numbers and frequency of bald eagles perched in that grand snag? Did they ever see eleven herons roosting in that tree? Or observe the Lewis’ woodpeckers, osprey, magpies, ravens, turkey vultures and hawks which frequented its branches?
Did the city know that this tree has weathered many lightning strikes and bumps by careless drivers, yet stood strong? How many such trees are there on the Animas River in town? Only one other that we know of – at the fish hatchery, where interpretative signage reads “Cutting down snag trees robs many animals of a place to live, and threatens their survival.”
The trunk now lies like rubbish where it fell; the stump is a ragged reminder of loss. At the very least, can that trunk be given to a fine carpenter to mill it, plane it and build something of lasting beauty?
Or perhaps can it be given to a caring artist to sculpt beauty honoring the tree’s many feathered visitors. Maybe this sculpture could grace the place where the Arc of History once stood?
Or maybe, cut and polish rounds of the trunk for school children to learn Durango’s history; this tree stood for more than 160 years, sprouting at least twenty years before Durango was incorporated as a town!
Lastly, might it be possible to replace it with some high perch for our feathered friends?
Sandy Bielenberg and Maggie Bowes
Durango
