In June of 2022, I had two trees planted and I call them my Tony Trees. A group of my sorority sisters had pooled money together so I could have them planted in his honor. It was a time when everyone was looking for a way to help. After sitting on it for a while, I picked an October Glory Maple and a Redbud clump.

I had the maple planted at the back of the yard. We had planned to put a pool in the backyard that I had to cancel in the aftermath of his death. In 2022, I still had a little hope I might revive that project. So, I made sure to plan the tree where it wouldn’t impede a potential future pool.

The redbud was planted closer to the house. It makes a nice view from the grill area out back. I also made sure it was planted far enough away from the house to prevent teenagers from using it to sneak in or out of the house.

I put a lot of thought into the trees I picked and their placement in the yard. At a year in, every decision felt so important. There is so much advice online about not making big decisions in the first year, it was somewhat debilitating.

Now four years later and the maple tree has died. I’m not sure what happened to it but it’s dead dead. The redbud tree seems to be thriving, and I do love its purple blooms in the spring.

Looking back at the care I placed into these trees, it’s ironic one didn’t last very long. While it’s sad, I’m not devastated. Maybe that’s because I planted two trees. No one else is going to show up to chop this dead tree down. Don’t even get me started on the original tree stakes I’m not strong enough to pull, that have been standing at attention for four years. My Tony Trees have turned into a Tony Tree and to do list.