The Old Oak Tree

For the majority of our nearly 43 years of marriage, my husband and I have lived in the home we currently reside in.  The only exceptions were five months in a basement apartment while I finished college in Williston, and another span of less than a year in an apartment in Crosby while our house was being built.  In addition, we also spent a short time "house sitting" for my husband's grandparents who spent time in the winter visiting their son in Seattle, Washington. 

The other day, as I walked past this house, memories entered my mind of our time spent there.  It was a cozy little house, with a large kitchen/dining room space, a living room, a den off the entryway, and bedrooms upstairs.  The main bathroom was upstairs, but there was also a small room by the front door with a stool and sink on the main level.  Under the stairs leading up to the second level was a cute little storage place, which had been a favorite play spot when the grandchildren were little.
 

 

The house has changed hands several times over the years, and several remodel jobs have made it into a different house than when we lived there.  One thing, however, still remains.  The old, oak tree.  They tell me my husband's grandfather planted the tree.  At the time it was one of the few oak trees in our community.  Today it stands tall in the corner of the yard overlooking one of the main roads going through the center of our town.

 



 

 

Earlier this fall, while out walking, I had noticed many of the acorns which had fallen from the tree, and picked up a few to add to my fall décor.  This salt and pepper shaker set actually came from a collection of a sister to the grandmother who lived in this house, so I thought it appropriate the squirrels could be part of the display.

 

 

I also did some research on starting an oak tree from an acorn, and now have a small plastic baggie in my refrigerator which contains some of the acorns in moist potting soil.  They are supposed to stay there for at least three months before the next step of the process.  How fun it would be, I thought, to start a new oak tree using an acorn harvested from the tree planted by my husband's grandfather!

 

On another walk this past week, I took note of the many oak leaves blanketing the ground in the area of the tree.  They have such a unique shape, and I even took a few home with the intent of doing a craft project with them.  As of now, they are still just reminding me of the old, oak tree and the dear man who planted it. 

 



 

Reminders. . .and precious memories.  One can never have too many!