Goodbye, Woodpecker Tree

The wind and rain woke me up in the middle of the night last night. It sounded very scary. So did the bumps and bangs coming from outside. I turned on the tv and found that there were no weather warnings of any kind, so I went back to bed. The power went out as I was settling back under the covers. 

When we woke up at about 7:00, the storm was over but the power was still out. I got dressed and took Sophie outside for her morning constitutional. On the front porch, I noticed that a screen had blown off one of the bedroom windows. Halfway down the front steps, I noticed something else: the woodpecker tree was lying on its side. It had blown over in the storm. 

I loved that tree. When we bought The Yellow House in 1996, the thing was just a twig. Vann nurtured it, and it had grown into a large tree that shaded that side of the lawn and provided a place for an obstreperous woodpecker to peck for bugs. His peckings had made great patterns in the bark. (Click on the link above if you want to see.)

That and a few roof shingles were the only damage we suffered, but there were trees down all over, and thousands of people in Alabama are still without electricity. Ours came back on at about 9:00 a.m.

Vann had chemo this afternoon. All his blood tests showed his counts were way up, so Dr. L. sent him back for his treatment. Tomorrow, before his second treatment of this cycle, he's having another CT scan, the first since the initial one in November. Please pray for good results. We are, and we're trusting God for just that.

GOOD NEIGHBORS--

The best, in fact. When we got home late this afternoon, three of our great neighbors and good friends were just completing the cleanup from the downed woodpecker tree. Nolan brought his chainsaw, and John and Paul joined him. When we checked our phone messages, we had one from Ashleigh, John's daughter, who had called from work to ask if she could help with removing the tree.

We are so very blessed to have such good friends and neighbors. That includes our blogging friends as well. We ask God every day to bless all of you. We appreciate you more than you'll ever know.

TOO TIRED FOR LIMERICKS

We're both very tired. Vann has already turned in. We're supposed to have more storms tonight, so I'm still up waiting to see if they'll be severe. But my brain is much too tired to come up with limericks tonight. I'll catch up later--or I won't. We'll see. Oh, and thanks, Marla, for the limerick you sent me. It's a good 'un, one we can both understand, huh? I'll post it later too.

Good night, all.

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This post was migrated from the old blog. To see the comments on the original post, CLICK HERE. To add a new comment, click "Post a Comment", below.

On 04/14/2009, Amy R said ...

Prayers headed your way and so glad you are walking among angels named Nolan, John, Paul and Ashleigh!

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On 04/14/2009, Mary on Lake Pulaski said ...

Prayers for Vann and you.

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On 04/14/2009, Clare said ...

I had seen there was some bad weather in your part of the country. I am glad that was all the damage you had.
It is wonderful that you have good friends and neighbors - prayers for you and your husband.

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On 04/14/2009, Nicole said ...

So sad about the tree. I know you will miss its shade and the entertainment it provided. What wonderful neighbors you have. Prayers for Vann and you.

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On 04/14/2009, Barbara Anne said ...

I understand the mourning that comes with losing a tree. One of our beautiful oaks just tipped over in a storm about 2 years ago and that side of the yard hasn't been the same since. We've planted a maple and two Bradford pears, but still miss the shade of that huge tree. Kudos to your wonderful neighbors and sincere hugs to you and Vann.

Hope Vann is feeling better and won't be knocked for a loop by today's treatment. May the results of the scan be more amazing that you can even imagine. Prayers continue.

Hugs!

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On 04/14/2009, Trudy Neill of Windemere Farm said ...

Hi there you two!

I may be puny with pneumonia here, but I am sending strong hugs and healing prayers your way. Glad the house is ok and sorry for the woodpecker and yourself on the loss of the tree. Get some rest !
Hugs,
Trudy

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On 04/14/2009, Beverly said ...

Susan, I just wanted to stop by for a minute to let you know that you both are always in my prayers.

I really miss visiting everyone, but hopefully my mom is "on the mend".

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On 04/14/2009, bj said ...

I am sorry you lost the tree...prayers for all of you...
xo bj

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On 04/15/2009, Joan said ...

Glad you have great neighbours Susan at times like these.

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On 04/15/2009, Phillip Cleveland said ...

Hi Dad & SuSu,
Great news yesterday!!! Too bad about the woodpecker tree. Maybe another could be restored in its place. We are so very happy and thankful for the blessings we are receiving in our family. Y'all really do have very fine neighbors, by the way, and we are all very lucky in so many ways. We love y'all very much, and can not wait to see you! Take care, Phillip.
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