5月16日的龍卷風已經過去近二個月了，對人的心靈創傷始終在，雖然恐怖感漸減。古董社區也在恢複中，市裏已經派特製卡車將殘樹運走，留下的樹樁還需要與公司討價還價。
現在麵臨的挑戰是如何決定受傷大樹的命運，富豪級別的麥律師提議將中間綠地帶的樹全部移走，然後讓美國著名的園林公司競標，恐怕會花超過幾百萬美元建園林景觀。這樣灘在每家身上恐怕高達5萬美元，他聊到大家可以貸款，這家夥不缺錢。
最近似乎董事會沒有采納他的建議，而是選擇在需要鋸的大樹將紅絲條帶標上，等待它們的是生命終結的時刻。具有諷刺意義的是麥律師家前綠地的大樹完好，幾乎沒有標定被砍的紅絲帶。整個古董社會大約還剩30%左右的樹將會幸免，大家可以想象龍卷風的破壞程度。
我是對人隨便砍樹很反感的人，那天清晨看見死刑判決書般的紅絲帶後給董事們寫了這封電子郵件，標題是“Saving our trees in the Portland Place”（保存Portland私人社區的樹）：
Dear Trustees,（親愛的董事）
First and foremost, I want to express my deep gratitude for your tireless efforts in the aftermath of the recent tornado. This truly has been a once-in-a-lifetime event, and your hard work in helping our neighborhood recover is appreciated more than words can express.
(首先，我要對您在近期龍卷風過後的不懈努力表達我深深的感激之情。這真的是一次千載難逢的自然事件，而您為幫助我們社區恢複所付出的辛勤勞動，實在難以用言語表達我們的感激)
As someone who walks the neighborhood daily, I was heartbroken to see so many trees marked with red ribbons for removal. These trees are not only a cherished part of Portland Place’s character and natural beauty, but they also contribute to our property values and the overall well-being of everyone who lives here.
(作為一位每天在社區散步的居民，我看到那麽多樹木被綁上紅色絲帶準備砍除，心中感到十分難過。這些樹木不僅是 Portland Place 的社區特色與自然美景的重要組成部分，也關乎我們的房產價值以及所有居民的整體福祉)。
While I fully understand and support the removal of trees that pose a safety risk—especially those that are dying or severely damaged—I noticed that some trees, including one I photographed this morning, appear to still be healthy and potentially recoverable.
（我完全理解並支持移除那些存在安全隱患的樹木——尤其是那些瀕死或嚴重受損的樹木。但我注意到，一些被標記的樹木看上去依然健康，有可能得以恢複。我今天早上還拍了一棵這樣的樹）
This situation reminded me of the title of my college entrance essay, written over 40 years ago in China: "毀樹容易，種樹難," which translates to "Destroying a tree is easy; planting one is hard."
（這一情景讓我想起四十多年前我在中國參加高考時寫的作文題目：《毀樹容易，種樹難》）
The Chinese college entrance exam is famously rigorous, and that essay title still offers me wisdom today. It feels especially relevant now, as we face decisions that will shape the long-term landscape of our historic neighborhood.
（中國的高考以嚴格著稱，而那篇作文題目的寓意至今仍給我啟示。如今我們正麵臨將決定這個曆史街區長遠風貌的抉擇，這句話顯得尤為貼切）
I respectfully ask that the Trustees consider having a certified arborist or a qualified city planner carefully evaluate each tree marked for removal. If any can be saved without compromising safety, I hope they will be spared.
（我在此鄭重建議理事會請有資質的樹藝師或城市規劃專家，對每一棵被標記準備砍除的樹木進行仔細評估。如果有樹木在不影響安全的前提下仍有可能保留，我希望它們能被留下）
Thank you again for your dedication and care for our community. (再次感謝您對我們社區的奉獻與關愛)
古董社會是人傑地靈的地方，以前去世的鄰居是心髒外科醫生，還有老布什總統的表弟。我最近穀歌了直接鄰居的德國姓氏，為勤勞的美國中西普通白人，但是他正擔任著超過千人的公司CEO。他從不提起這些，隻知道他以前經常飛中國做生意，還說起深圳市長接見之類的話題。
古董社區的董事們全是熱心人士，他們都是完全以自願者的身份服務社區，董事泰戈隨即寫來回郵：
“Thanks for this note （omitted name). It's hard to look out the window every day at all the damaged trees, it's very heartbreaking. The trees are a big part of what makes the neighborhood so special.
（謝謝你的來信（省略姓名）。每天望向窗外看到那些受損的樹木，真的很令人心碎。樹木是這個社區如此特別的重要組成部分）
“We did walk the neighborhood with an arborist and tagged trees that he thought wouldn't recover or where there are safety concerns. Some of the tagged trees along the edge of the greeway are being removed due to how they are breaking up the concrete and their potential failure mode- as we observed in the tornado there is very little root support under the street and sidewalks. It's a shame so many were planted so close to the edge and we won't be doing that when we start restoring the greenway. The arborist generally thought we should give the sweetgums a chance to come back, and he didn't think many of the oak trees that lost a large portion of their canopies would recover, which is very sad as they are such beautiful trees.
（我們確實曾和一位樹藝師一起走訪了社區，並對他認為無法恢複或存在安全隱患的樹木進行了標記。綠化帶邊緣的一些樹木被標記移除，是因為它們正在破壞混凝土結構，且存在倒塌風險 —— 正如我們在龍卷風中所觀察到的，街道和人行道下的樹根支撐非常薄弱。很可惜當初有那麽多樹被種在邊緣地帶，我們在今後的綠化帶修複工作中將避免重蹈覆轍。樹藝師總體認為甜口香樹（sweetgums）應該有機會恢複，而那些失去大部分樹冠的橡樹可能難以存活，這真的很讓人難過，因為它們是如此美麗的樹種）
“We are trying to give every possible tree a chance, we certainly don't want our street to look like Wydown where they essentially did a clear cut. We have the sprinkler system back on so hopefully that will help with greenway recovery as well.”
（我們正盡一切努力讓每一棵樹都有生還的機會，我們當然不希望我們的街道變得像 Wydown 那樣幾乎被一刀切式地清空。我們已經重新啟用了噴灌係統，希望這也能幫助綠化帶盡快恢複）
我回函對泰戈表示感謝，他的信息告訴我們，他們己經做出了所有的努力，我們也到了向這些可能樹齡達百歲的大樹說再見的時候了。
我們如何處理龍卷風所致的古董社區那些殘留的巨大樹樁？最近董事會己經找到合同公司，代價是向我們征收50萬美元的額外費用。刨樹根以前是從上麵開始，現在似乎也可以從側麵逐層切，還是搖控的方式，看來美國什麽領域都在技術革新。正如董事給我的郵件中所述，種在側走道綠地的大樹根很淺，因為四周均是水泥。它們根本經不起龍卷風的襲擊，這也是那麽多大樹被連根拔起的原因。
晚上回來時看見鋸的成果顯著。
