Friday, July 11, 2008

SWEET GUM

As my Mom left me today she handed me this woody looking sphere and said, "Do you know what this is?" Puzzled I shook my head. "Sweet gum", she replied and continued, "Remember that post you did about sycamore trees (March 27), well you were wrong they were sweet gum trees". Mom told me she did some checking and actually found this sweet gum pod or seed ball to show me. She had been driving around with it for several months. I couldn't believe that she pursued this, but then if you know my Mom you know she is tenacious when it comes to education and learning (especially the New York Times Sunday crossword). I turned the pod over in my hands, touched the sharp prickly edges and marveled at how intricate it was. All dried it looked interesting and I liked the way the light hit it. I mused about how such a thorny, prickly thing could be from a sweet gum tree! Just another conundrum to think about.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Leave it to mom. The picture makes it look so interesting I think it should be dipped in gold.