Christmas Reminders All Year

When John was little, we started a family tradition of picking out our Christmas Tree from the Live Oak Canyon Christmas Tree Farm in Yucaipa. Every year, the weekend after Thanksgiving, we would spend the afternoon wandering the property looking for the perfect potted pine tree, browsing the gift shop, and letting the kids play in the blow up rides and petting zoo.  (http://trees.liveoakcanyon.com/)

After the holiday we would plant the pine tree in our yard. Often the tree wouldn't make the heat of a Hemet summer, but some took root and thrived—two even growing to 20 plus feet.

Around March, I noticed that one of my beautiful, old trees was dying from the inside out. Upon further examination, I noticed that there were little holes burrowed into the tree trunk and sap was seeping out like tears. This was the handy work of the Bark Beetle. The last infestation hit San Bernardino County forests around 1998, due to drought conditions and other factors. Unfortunately once infested, there is nothing that can be done to save the tree. (http://www.sbcounty.gov/museum/barkbeetle/distribution.htm )

Every day, from the underside needles outward, I watched the branches that once proudly supported our ornaments turn brown and brittle. Finally, I could stand looking at my poor tree anymore, so I had my gardener cut the branches off, leaving the trunk to stand alone against the wind. No more would it be shading my boxers in the summertime.

To me, it seemed like a metaphor for my life in California. It was getting harder and harder to keep up with the rising cost of gas, electricity, water, taxes, etc.

Maybe watching my tree die made it easier for me to leave California, despite the distance that would be set between my family, wonderful neighbors, and dear friends in my writing critique group.