Guardian of the Norway maple

摘要

I sat under its shade as a boy, already aware of the magnificence. Its fixture to the earth, the strong sinuous trunk and architecture were a comfort. Long before the term "biomechanics" was introduced to my vocabulary, I marveled at the tree's ability to adapt. I observed the dynamic dance with the wind and the energy transfer from shoots to roots, disseminated to the earth below. The reconfiguration of the foliage produced a surreal effect, the chaotic energy abated through mass damping. The tree was a Norway maple.