Stromy vypravují - Příběhy o stromech a lidech – Hrušková Marie (2018)

The memory of trees is much longer than human memory, but like everything that lives, trees are mortal. When an old tree dies, we may be left with drawings, and from more recent times, film recordings. However, the relationships that connected it – sometimes for centuries – with the people living around it will vanish, memories will fade, and the stories that belonged to it will disappear. It has almost become a given that there are so many books about castles and chateaus – while trees seem to have been almost forgotten. I have been dealing with monumental trees for decades. Explanations of why a particular tree is monumental are often requested by listeners and readers. Together with my colleagues, I have prepared three dozen stories, in which the most important trees are featured. Most of the inspiration came from folk tales. Like any selection, our collection is influenced by knowledge and sympathies. We have left even more space for those who will want to continue our work. And they should. Trees – both ancient and younger – deserve it. The lives of trees intertwined in stories with the fates of people allow us to reflect on our own history. Trees, by living longer than humans, become witnesses to the fates of those alongside whom they sometimes grow for centuries. And that is why they can 'narrate'. This book is about that: how people lived,…