Tree Blocks and the Pride of Ma and Pa Ingalls

My day came into focus with the alarming of the clock radio in my son’s room.

How I can hear that alarm from across that hall while my son, the alarm’s owner, sleeps straight through it, is beyond me.

I open his bedroom door just enough to sneak my hand in and flip on the light. The sounds of his ‘Ah, no! Don’t do that!’, make me feel strangely better. So much for that Mother of the Year award.

Making my way back to my bedroom, I take a moment to look out the window. I stare at the remains of three trees, cut down by Reed on Saturday and now piled up in my vegetable garden. I won’t be planting my peas this month. We won’t be able to afford to rent a chipper until April. But the mulch created from the trees will be fantastic for the garden’s soil.

At least that’s what I keep telling myself.

Watching Reed bring down the trees on Saturday made me feel a bit like Ma and Pa Ingalls, clearing the land to ready it for spring planting. Except Reed was wielding a chainsaw and Parker and I were securely on the other side of the window, oxygen concentrator humming, shaking our heads at Reed’s latest endeavor.

I watched as Reed anchored a rope to the top of each tree and handed off the other end to Rigel. As Reed made the saw cuts, it was Rigel’s job to guide the tree into the proper felling position.

The look of shock on Rigel’s face as the first tree came falling in his direction was classic. I had to grin as my man sized 13 year old ran like hell, terrified that he was going to be pancaked. Reed knew that the tree wouldn’t be coming any where near him, but it is hard to believe that when you are standing in it’s rapidly lengthening shadow.

Before he put his saw away I asked Reed to cut circles of wood in various sizes to make ‘tree blocks’ for Parker to build with. I chose to remove the very thick bark and they are now drying on my counter waiting for a good sanding.  After that I’ll rub them with beeswax to make them glow.

Beautiful, safe, eco-friendly and best of all free.

I’m thinking Ma and Pa Ingalls would be very proud indeed.