The Great Storm of 1987

The Turkey oak in our garden was being battered by the gale force winds and I suddenly realised that it was leaning at an extreme angle.

As I yelled "it's going!" our lovely tree fell.

Now there was just emptiness in the sky.

We had only been living in the house for a couple of months and were so pleased that our new garden had a mature tree. Described as 'a spreading tree of stately habit', its elegance and attractive shape made it the pride of the garden.

The leaves were different, oblong, very glossy, dark green and deeply lobbed. Now it was just a tangled mass of undignified branches and useless roots.

The death of any tree is sad and we know our garden will never be the same - not in our lifetime.

But, joy!

Just one acorn has taken root and is growing strongly. The birds will have to wait a long time before they can shelter in its branches, but it's there!

A reminder for always of the storm of '87.
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I wrote the above a little while after the event and it is still upsetting to re-read it. However, our new oak is still there and is now considerably taller than me!

The photo is of my husband John trying to deal with the aftermath.