The Elm Tree

Jennospot 70  The Elm Tree

 

There used ter be a real big elm tree at the back o' JJ's 'ouse, until it it got blowed down in a storm. An' thereby 'angs a tale wot Peter St John tells in "Gang Warfare". Any'ow, this 'ere elm tree were the biggest in Widdlin'ton. Oi used ter be able ter see it from my bedroom skylight wot is up in the roof. Actually there are two skylights, one wot looks out over the garden o' Peter's aunt, an' one from where Oi c'n look out the ovver way towards this elm tree in Railway Meadow.

Any'ow, since the elm tree ain't there any more, an' Oi miss it, Oi'm goin' ter write about it so's Oi don't ferget. It were the biggest tree in the village, an' that's why Oi fink of it as "The Tree". It were thick, an' solid, an' so alive yew c'd almost 'ear it breavin'. It swam in the sky, breastin' the wind. There was always a green dimness under its leaves, even at midday, when a clan o' crows took a rest after swoopin' around in the air and stalkin' around on the ground, lookin' fer somefink ter eat fer their cawin' fam'lies up in their twiggy nests.

From moi evenin' skylight, Oi could see it loike a sombre, undersea monster (ain't "sombre" a super shadowy word?) drinkin' up moisture from the silent earth wiv it's octopus roots, loike a seriously solid sponge. Its 'ead would lift from the knobbly trunk up ter the comin' dark, losin' itself little by little in the shadows, until sparklin' gleams reflected the stars from its shiverin' leaves.

Sometoimes Oi wondered if'n that ol' Elm c'd fink loike us, an' if so, wot kinda thoughts it 'ad. D'yew reckon it used ter dream loike us? Oi reckon it did.

But now all its thoughts an' all its dreams 'ave gone fer firewood ter warm our wint'ry nights. Oi'm glad it lived. Oi'm sorry it's gone, but Oi'm glad it still lives in moi mem'ry. D'yew reckon it remembers me, lookin' at it from moi sky winder?

If'n yew'd loike ter read more about this grand old elm tree, yew c'n foind it in Peter St John's "Gang Warfare": http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004WXF5M4 (USA) or http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004WXF5M4 (UK), but Peter don't remember it at all loike wot Oi do, 'cos 'ee lived in a bungalow be'ind moi 'ouse, an' yew couldn't see the the elm tree from there.

Any'ow, luv from Jenno.

By the way, don't ferget moi two e-books, "Jenno's Widdlington", an' "Jenno's Widdlington II".There ain’t no elm trees in 'em, but they're free: http://www.smashwords.com/b/128813 an' http://www.smashwords.com/b/166979

An' then there's Peter St John's website: http://www.peterstjohn.net/ but it ain’t got no elm trees in it neither…