The Tree House Story
How The Tree-House Came To Be CRACK! BOOM! WHUP!
We bolted up right in bed. I heard the roar of wind and the pitter-patter of rain outside. We rush to the front room and look out our window. We switch on the flashlight to see the source of the nighttime commotion. A huge, partially dead branch from one of the old cottonwood trees has crashed to the ground during the storm. If it had fallen on a person, it would have been curtains…
Our cottonwood trees are estimated to be close to a hundred years old. They were planted in the 1920’s when the first part of the house was built. Time has taken a toll on these giants, and they are dying. We have previously cut down 2 trees and this third tree is the largest. We called a tree guy, and he gave us an estimate of $900 to remove the tree. I know how much work it takes to remove these monsters as we have taken one of the trees down ourselves, but we were reluctant to shell out that much. He explained the base of the tree would be a major ordeal. He would only charge us $600 if the stump remained. We told him to leave it.
After much debate we finally decided to create a little house out of the stump. Bob used a saw to make the impression of a door and window. We bought a door handle and hinges. I shellacked the wood to make it look more like a door and the window, and then painted them with extra touches. We found some rough-cut wood for the roof. I used leftover firewood nailed to the bottom and filled in the gaps with dirt and rocks to form steps. Bob found a copper cap and an old stove pipe in the garage for the top. He also retrieved recovered bird’s nests and strategically placed them in nooks and crannies. He built a flower box and I planted geraniums in that and flowers in other pots that were found around the house.
People have their own opinion about our tree house. Bob calls it the troll house. I call it the Lorax House (always the librarian). Others have suggested that it looks like a tool shed, potting shed, even an outhouse. But most people think that gnomes or elves would be the most likely to inhabit it. I will leave it up to each individual’s imagination…
