Friday 7 November 2008

Whatever happened?

Whatever happened last night?

This morning as we walked to school the ground was littered with green - yes, green - leaves.  We have enjoyed kicking up the brown and orange leaves from the horse chestnut trees (almost as much as collecting all the conkers a few weeks earlier) but today was a sudden blanket of green.

It looks as if one tree dropped all its leaves - just like that.  I think it is an ash (they look something like this), but I'm rather dredging that up from primary school field trips.  If the ash loses its leaves before the oak does that mean we're in for a wet winter?

6 comments:

Tim Atkinson said...

No - I think that old saw relates to when they get their leaves in Spring!

Catharine Withenay said...

Welcome - great to hear from you!

I was aware of the Spring saying - just wondered if the reverse were also true. Could we invent rhymes for leaves falling?

Of course, the proverbial 'old wife' probably had a basis for the oak/ash saying, which some learned scientist has no doubt subsequently proved (and other then disproved) and yet we will continue to hand this down to our offspring along with a million other pithy sayings ... which they in turn will laugh at/struggle with/dismiss out of hand (delete as appropriate!)

Yorkshire Pudding said...

A well known country saying:-

Should the bonny ash loseth its leaves afore the oak
Deep snow shall falleth afore the new year hath spoke

I just made that up!

Catharine Withenay said...

Blimey! You're quick! Perhaps it was the late hour last night but I couldn't get further than thinking 'know' rhymed with 'snow'. I'll put some slightly-more-awake thought into it today!

Thank you!

Penny Pincher said...

Just popped over after seeing your comment on WITN blog. I also lost my mother when I was 16 - in 1965. Like you I still remember the anniversary and am saddened. It's hard to not have shared my life with my mother. I still feel so envious of friends, some who are 10 years older than I, who still have a mother in their lives.

Catharine Withenay said...

Thank you for your kind words. It is always comforting to know there are others who have been through the same, or at least similar, experiences.

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