A TREE FALLEN

'What if', I thought.

What if this had happened yesterday when all three children were sitting underneath the dead tree as I was making a photo of them.

What if it would have fallen in the opposite direction through the window.

What if it landed on a car or on someone who happened to be passing by at the most unlucky moment.

What ifs made up my afternoon as I drove up to the driveway and looked over to my front lawn. There was no force of nature to have knocked over half of the tree. No wind or storm. Merely the weight of a rotting branch on a dead tree.

My mind raced as to what I should do next. An email to the landlord was the first order of business. That was followed by another email to him informing him of the need to cut down the rest of the tree before it snapped off as well.

I then called the lawn service company to schedule a time to cut down the tree. Afterwards I sent a third email to the landlord informing him of my intent to have the tree removed due to liability issues and damage to the house. I have yet to hear from him.

"We will play away from the tree', the children promised. They were fascinated with the fallen tree but I did not wish to risk their safety in case the other half of the tree decided it was too tired and weak to hang on.

With great reluctance, the three played indoors.