Unchopping a Tree

- W. S. Merwin

(This essay has a meaning different from its apparent meaning. It is a persuasive discourse. It suggests that we should conserve the trees and we should not cut them down. Chopping down the tree is so easy, but we find the task of rejoining its parts impossible.)

To unchop a tree, you must start with the restoration of the leaves, the small twigs, and the nests. The difficulty of the task depends upon the size, age, shape, and species of the tree. It will take a lot of labour. You may want to use the skill and labour of ants, mice or squirrels, but they won’t come to help you. Human beings do not have any substitute for the natural things. Once the leaves become dry, it is very difficult to restore them in their respective places. Every other damaged tree around must be repaired. If the trees are of the same species, the task becomes more difficult. But you should not give up hope. You should keep practising.

Though it is very difficult to handle the erecting of scaffolding, you should work carefully. You should very delicately use the tackle to erect the trunk. You’ll have to put the nuts into the hollow correctly. Otherwise, you’ll have to stop the work. You’ll have to hang the bole vertically above the stump. Every splinter of both the parts should be properly fixed. When the splinters are properly fixed, the appropriate fixative is applied. We will have to apply three different types of fixative for the core, the outer layer and the bark.

After you have joined the trunk and the stump together, you must gather the chips and sawdust. You should apply the correct adhesive for the chips and sawdust to fix them back to their places.

The adhesive for the chips is translucent. It is transparent for the bark and its subcutaneous layers. The joining does not set the sap flowing again. There will be passable small holes which will be completely joined perfectly, you cannot sleep properly. When you will have to remove the scaffolding, you cannot hope for a sunny and breezeless day. You cannot be sure how long the tree will stand at its place. You can do nothing more.