On my walk today, a muddy one given the recent heavy rain, I approached “my” spot in the woods where the decaying birch trunk lies. To my initial dismay, I found the forest floor had been disturbed. Parts of the rotting trunk and its attached fungal growth had been moved around! The dreaded army of volunteers had been at it again!
On closer inspection, I noticed that the clearing of much of the undergrowth and overhanging branches of the surrounding trees has revealed a treasure in the form of the remaining standing trunk of “my” fallen birch, previously hidden from view. The standing trunk is covered in dark callouses and is a splendid mass of texture. The dark callouses at the base of the trunk are reminiscent of the dark texture on Klimt’s larger birch trunks in “The Birch Forest.”
What a difference a day makes! The snowfall changes everything and brings a stillness to the woods. There is a magical quality to the bridge and stream as the sun peeps through the trees. Does the monument look familiar, Geoff?
The shelf fungi and the birch trunk look splendid in the snow, the colours and textures seem heightened today, perhaps by the light of the late afternoon sun on the snow.
The small birds and squirrels brave the snow in search of food.
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