Hannah: Trees and Gnats

H.R. Waller
Date: 10 September
Time: 1430
Place: The bank of the Mill Race between the library and Rogers music hall on campus.
Weather: Sunny, cloudless. 78 degrees.
There is a small cloud of gnats buzzing wildly around each other in front of me. As I look out on to the river I notice several more of these tiny bugs. However, the majority are not in clusters like this one. Are they looking for food? Do they like the hot weather or are they anxiously awaiting a cooler break? I’m currently seated in the shade of a tall and very “clean” looking tree whose trunk is just big enough that I can’t get my arms around it. The bark is a light reddish brown color with several white spots all over and on the branches as well. It appears as if someone splattered it with bleach. This tree has a plethora of appendages going off in every direction and many leaf clusters with large green leaves that look like maple leaves. This tree looks very confident and at peace with itself compared to some of the smaller and less perfect looking vegetation surrounding it. Also, directly next to it is a small shrub growing up from the ground no more than 1 and a half feet tall. Its branches are spread all over in a messy fashion, and 3 spider webs inhabit its crevasses The leaves are oblong and arranged randomly at the end of each branch. Also there are many brown and dry spots indicting a less healthy life. Is the tree hogging the nutrients? Or is the shrub trying to mooch off the tree?