Just outside the fence, near the corner of our porch, stood a gentle tree. I never figured out what kind it was, a little like a willow, a little like a dogwood. It was a tremendously graceful tree.

Last summer, a couple of the large branches dies off, so I took them down, hoping whatever was killing them could be contained. Today, I had to take down the rest of the tree.

I’m going to miss it a bit.