The new American elms on the UVM campus still fulfill their original beauty. (Kathryn Maitland, September 20, 2013)

 

“’The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way’” (Imagination, 2013).

 – from a letter written by William Blake in 1906 to Reverend John Trusier in 

The Letters of William Blake by Geoffrey Keynes (1956)

     I love this quote because it summarizes my feelings of trees and specifically American elms. Before I started this class and began learning about the American elm, I thought a tree was just a tree and there was not much else to it. In this class I learned about how there are many different kinds of trees. Then when I started to research the American elm, I realized how each species of tree is so unique. Each type of tree has their own story; it is like getting to know a person or place really well because as you learn about the person or place, their stories and cultures start unraveling, just like trees. Discovering the stories and traditions behind American elms, reminds me of the many explorations I have made while jogging around Shelburne Farms and learning about the history of Shelburne Farms. I have felt tremendous amounts of joy and content as I learned about Shelburne Farms and now the American elm. These once mysterious and unknown topics have become intriguing and fulfilling adventures.