Voices from Small Places - Arcadia, TX
G. Grant
March 29, 2014
Arcadia, Texas
Photograph #17
Title: Old Umbrella Chinaberry
"There used to be a big Umbrella Chinaberry tree in the backyard which cast a cool shade beneath for backyard activities. I used to sit in the crotch of the tree above a continual hen ness and "spy" on the backyard. Once my granddad and myself were cutting corn off the con for "cream style" corn when a mockingbird pooped in a full pan of cut corn that my Papaw was working on. I remember it was bright magenta from poke berries. He scooped it out in a single motion, never said a word, & kept cutting. My granny used to set me with a #3 tub for a "swimming pool" beneath this same tree. I can still smell its distinct smell. Later my Papaw planted 3 other Chinaberries but always cussed them because they weren't "Umbrella" Chinaberries, a distinct variety with a dense dome shaped top - originally found on the San Jacinto battle ground."
