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Published: July 31st 2019
"To what shall I liken the world? Moonlight reflected in dewdrops, shaken from a cranes bill." Dogen Zenji born around 1200 - died 1253.
This was one of those apt sayings that pop up now and again on my calendar of Eastern philosophy. Rather apt somehow. Think back 50 years . Can you remember what you were doing when you heard that man had landed on the moon? It was one of those events that was etched in my memory. It was the same with the news that Kennedy had been assassinated, Elvis had died and the events of 911. I still can remember the room I was in when my friends gran came up to tell us the news that was coming out of Dallas, I was on the A41 in a car when the newsreader on the radio told us that Elvis was dead and on a train somewhere near to Birmingham when the terrorists caused the carnage that was The Worlds Trade Centre. Memories of the moon landing were around my gran who was one of those old ladies who had lived through many kings and queens, listened to the Abdication, lived through two world wars and
watched the men landing on the moon. She watched the trains developing , air travel and television . She looked up and pronounced that she was pleased she did not live on something like the Moon floating there in space. I tried to explain the concept of space and the planets but I dont know if she ever understood fully.
Gabby has been unpacked, the bedding washed and some cleaning done. Everything came out and went back in again as we had a viewer for our home. Not what we were looking for they said. What are folks looking for I wonder. The habitation checks and the service have been booked in and we have ordered some euros to spend during the next holiday. A plan has been hatched. We have booked the train and travel down the night before . Camp site booked for an overnight stop and then we will be off. We have started counting down the days .
So what did we do today ? A trip out to Sherwood Forest and the Major Oak. We went to see this mighty tree over twenty years ago but things had changed tover thover the years. So who was the most famous resident of the forest - well that is easy it is Robin Hood and closely followed by the Major Oak . We parked up in the huge car park and paid our £4 parking fee and then walked round to the new visitor centre. The centre is fairly new and has an area with displays and a coffee shop. They sell an assortment of cakes and sandwiches and a selection of drinks. The oak is about a 15 minute walk away from the visitor centre and through the forest . A forest that has shrunk over the years. I am not sure just how easily Robin would be able to hide in Sherwood Forest now. No-one knows the exact age of the oak but it has been standing for somwhere between 800 – 1100 years. If you sIt and think about it it has stood through the Vikings, the Battle of Hastings, Agincourt, Waterloo, the births and deaths of Shakespeare, Henry VII, Dickens, Darwin, Newton, Chaucer, Cromwell, the two world wars, over 50 monarchs… it’s seen a lot! That is hard to comprehend.
The weather has taken its toll , fires high winds and storms, snowstorms and hundreds of years of deforestation. It has watched as millions of people from all over the world have gathered around it to stare up at its branches. When we visited years ago we could walk right under the tree and get close up and personal. Now to protect the tree which is the biggest in Britain with a canopy of 28 metres across. and a circumference of 11 metres you no longer can walk around it. The compaction of the ground meant that the tree was struggling. The tree weighs in at 23 tonnes which is hard to imagine. The sign said that it is unclear if the Major Oak is one tree or multiple saplings that have fused together. The soil below is also relatively poor and acidic, meaning the oak has had to take things steady, slowly growing over a long time to reach this size. It seems to have grown up in a clearing for most of its life, being able to grow outwards without having to compete against other trees. This is what allowed the Major Oak to spread its great boughs and fill as much space as possible. There were more Major Oaks in the past but they have fallen down or died and this is the only large tree of this proportions in the forest. How long it will stand with its structural supports is hard to estimate .
We wanted to do something different today and looking at a giant tree fitted the bill very neatly.
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Jackie Harrison
non-member comment
Where are you off to?
Sardinia? I was in France when the men landed on the moon!. I was 14 years old and we were on a family holiday and I distinctly remember the newspaper ' Deux Hommes sur La Lune' . You are right! You never forget!