express in EIght More Poems

The Oldest Tree in the World

The Oldest Tree in the World

Back in 2006, I went to Las Vegas
And went to see the Bristol Cone Pine Trees
In the White Mountains of the eastern
Sierra Nevada Mountains in Eastern California.
The trees are 5,000 years old and have been around
They have seen things, heard things, witnessed history.
I wondered what they knew and asked them
The trees looked at me but remained silent.
o
________________________________________


JONATHAN the TORTOISE

His approximate age is estimated to be 191 as of 2024, making him the oldest known living land animal. Jonathan resides on the South Atlantic Island of St. Helena, a volcanic British Overseas Territory.

Jonathan arrived in St. Helena as a gift to Sir William Grey-Wilson in 1882, who later became governor of the island. Since then, Jonathan has wandered and grazed the gardens of Plantation House, the governor's residence, where he has seen 31 governors hold office

While the sanctuary where he lives lists his birth year as 1832, Guinness believes he could be older. That’s because he wasn’t discovered until 1882, when he was already fully mature. Clearly, some significant years had already passed. We just don’t know how many.

Jonathan has lived through many historical events. To name only a few:

o President Andrew Jackson's second inauguration in 1833 and the inaugurations of
39 more United States presidents
o The first photograph of a person snapped in 1838
o The incandescent lightbulb invented in 1878
o The beginning and end of two World Wars
o The first steps of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the Moon in 1969