Our old sugar maple finally had to come down. It leaned out over the house and had rotted to a point that there was not much holding it upright - just the same it was hard to see it go. I have grown up with this giant that was probably planted when the house was built a 150 or so years ago, have climbed high in it's branches (before I did so recently to limb it) and eaten the sweet syrup that came from it in years past. I guess nothing in this world will last very long except our characters and the those whom we are able to influence for eternity.