The Avenging Tree

From the journal I have been keeping since September 2007, L’Autofictif, published online daily, then in book form every year, I have extracted, roots included, these notes dedicated to trees. I give this anthology the title of “L’Arbre vengeur” [“The Avenging Tree”], which is also the name of the journal’s publisher.

09 25 07
Autumn first touches the chestnut trees of the Luxembourg gardens. It gives its spectacle in Paris before going on tour throughout France. Always this contempt for the provinces.

11 3 07
Lazily lying between two blue cypresses, it suddenly appears to me that my presence adds to the picture a delicate touch of human melancholy, and I then envy to the point of rage, to the point of fury, the blessed ones who have for a horizon this Tuscan hill.

02 02 08
I rain punches on the giant sequoia. Its spongy bark takes the blows without hurting me back. But neither does it crash down with a sinister crack. It’s a draw.