The stalwart black gum tree has been looking bad for years, its bark peeling. Even though we’ve lost so many trees recently, I thought this one would pull through.

“That can happen,” said the tree guy of the black gum’s sad condition. We’d finally booked him after losing several giants in one season. It’s his job to keep tabs on our trees, and he warned us that this one might not recover. But he also gave us hope, and I took it. The black gum always bounced back, so I thought it would again this year.

But it was not to be. No leaves, no greenery. Just a bare trunk, brittle and forlorn. Yes, birds still land on a branch from time to time. They use the black gum as a staging area for swooping down to the feeder. But the tree no longer harbors nests or nestlings.

Until today, though, at least its trunk stood sentinel. It remained upright to catch the morning light. But the executioner comes this afternoon to take it down, to turn it into lumber. I will try to be away from home when that happens. It’s hard to say goodbye.