Searching for Inspiration: My Neighbor’s Massive Tree

This mighty thing is an Australian Elm.

I bought my house back in 2009, and the romantic in me imagined this Shire-like scenery would be the key to finally igniting my passion for writing.

It may be pretty to look at, but its canopy spans half a block. It can be a real nuisance.

Living anywhere near this behemoth means you don’t get satellite reception, a good portion of your yard is in perpetual shade, its roots drill straight through your underground pipes, and tree-sized branches threaten to drop on your house during major storms.

It also dumps millions of leaves and seeds each year which regularly plug up our drainage system. My family has colloquially dubbed this stuff “tree garbage”.

However–especially when it has all its leaves–it reminds me of the famous camphor tree from My Neighbor Totoro.

My neighbor’s tree hasn’t inspired much writing, but it’s definitely inspired plenty of lazy afternoons where I sit on the glider and watch the sun set. In fact, it’s never had any kind of “magic writerly effect” on me at all. Not even once. I guess that’s not how these things work.

It has inspired a scene or two, though. And all that tree garbage does keep the soil nice and fertile. This tree has its perks. But muse-like magic sadly isn’t one of them.