The Tree by Calder's Gap

The tree was the lord of the neighbourhood

For it looked down over all,

Grown on a hill by a sparkling rill

It blossomed from Spring to Fall,

Its vibrant life flowed up from its roots

And broadcast through its leaves,

The warmth of a wise old autocrat

As it nestled into the eaves.

 

The tree had been there before the house

For a hundred years or so,

The builders wanted to cut it down

But the owner answered, ‘No!

There’s something magic about that tree

And I fear, if its timber falls,

The house you build will be cursed, you see,

I’ll be left with cold stone walls.’

 

The house changed hands as its owners died

But the tree grew on apace,

The other trees in the valley there

Were humbled by its grace,

Its topmost branch you could see for miles

It was marked on many a map,

They said, ‘Look out for the giant tree

On the hill by Calder’s Gap.’

 

The house was sold to a man called Binns,

A miserable kind of man,

They said he’d framed the dollar he’d earned

As a boy, while shifting sand,

But wealth had sharpened his temper, he

Was rude, to one and all,

The locals whispered behind their hands,

‘He’s headed for a fall.’

 

He looked from his bedroom window, and

He said, ‘I hate that tree!

It hides the view of the countryside,

The view that I paid to see.

You mark my words, it’s coming down,

It scrapes my window pane,

And wakes me up in the dead of night

It’ll go by the winter’s rain.’

 

The branches stroked on the window frame,

The frame was made of wood,

And passed to the tree its tale of shame

The tone of the owner’s mood,

The tree had shuddered, sent waves of pain

Abroad in the midnight air,

Like a cry of help, and its one refrain

Was, ‘Cut me, if you dare!’

 

The mile-a-minute responded first

Entwined and blocked the door,

Invaded the little garden shed

Where the axe lay on the floor,

It grew incredibly, overnight

As a shield around the tree,

To say, if a vine could really speak,

‘You’ll have to get through me!’

 

But Binns crawled out through a window,

Red of face and fighting mad,

‘What’s going on with this garden,

Where’s the gardener I had?

He went and got a machete, and

He slashed away at the vine,

Freed the door of its tendrils, and

The shed, in double time.

 

He found the axe on the earthen floor

And he took it to the tree,

‘You may have stood for a hundred years,

Now you’ll have to deal with me!’

He swung it once and the handle cracked

And splintered up his arm,

There wasn’t anything made of wood

That would do the old tree harm.

 

The splinter entered a major vein

And his blood dripped on the ground,

Apart from his scream and a sudden hush

There was just one other sound,

A violent cracking above his head

As a tree branch came away,

That hurtled down like a spear, and pinned

His heart to the ground that day.

 

The tree still towers above the rest

And sways in the slightest breeze,

It stands as a lord of the countryside

For it brought a man to his knees.

The house is ruined, a few stone walls

Still stand, and the curtains flap,

For nobody’s game to build again

Near the Tree by Calder’s Gap!

 

David Lewis Paget

Reviews

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

I love how trees play an important role in stories and myths of old. The Celts, the Irish, and the Welsh all worshipped trees, particularly the Oak. If you'll recall, Merlin was imprisoned in an oak tree in the Breton Forest by Viviane, the Lady of the Lake. Your story carries on this tradition, albeit with a darker edge. Love it!

[TPK Stories]

Looks like the tree won in the end....great story...

[TL Boehm]

don't mess with mother nature. I am reminded of an old apple tree at my grandparents house when I was a little girl. It was a beautiful thing, all wild with sweet peas that grew at the base as it fought for space with some overgrown lilac bushes. They sold the property and i am sure the tree was taken out.

[Angi]

Those old,old grandfather trees have seen more things than several of us combined. I loved the vengeful warning this poem roared. Very well done, David! Angi~

[Keith]

Magnificent tale, in my favourites. I just read it aloud to a small audience here.

[Tom]

As a country bumpkin and a very keen conservationist, naturally the outcome was most satisfactory !

A great old yarn that could be retold around the fireside for years and years and never lose it's intrigue!

[wordwarrior]

Wonderful! Loved it David and I was so glad to see the tree win! I know I'm bad, but mean spirited people make me sick and don't belong on this beautiful earth.
Yes I am more in tune with nature than people these days.
The ending to me was just what I had hoped! Hmmm is that bad of me? Too bad!

[Marie]

A tree like this should never come down. My family managed to get the big live oak where I grew up declared a landmark, so it couldn't be harmed. But I'll bet someone cut it down anyway.

[Mic]

Ha! Have always dreaded felling a tree, even when necessary. Will have added thought beforehand now. Excellent as always, David!