The Bahamian War on Trees

What is it about us and trees?My husband and I got a phone call the other night from the branch leader of our neighbourhood watch.  I thought it was going to be a message about security, about safety, you know, the things that neighbourhood watches are all about.But no.It appears that our neighbours, the people who live next door to us, sort of, have a problem with the fact that one of our trees overhangs their garden, and they want us to cut off the branches that do so.This happened after they butchered one of the trees in their back garden.  Someone has been up in it for the past two days with a cutlass, chopping branch after branch after branch.What I find most peculiar about this is that until they did that, their back garden was one of the most beautiful in the neighbourhood.  It was full of fruit trees -- citrus and mango and pear -- and my husband and I have always thought that if they don't want the land, we might want to buy it.It would appear, though, that beauty -- and oxygen and serenity and shade -- are not a premium in our city any more.  I haven't quite worked out what is.  After all, this is the neighbourhood where the desire of a single man, a businessman with a plan for a corner (and, it would appear, for the entire neighbourhood) involved the razing of his land and the erection of a warehouse.And we wonder why our young people are angry?  I'm not young, and I'm angry.  Push me enough and I might explode.It's time we stopped, took a look at ourselves, recognized greed and selfishness while we still can, and thought about living differently.  Not one of us is innocent.  We all have blood on our hands.Sap, anyway.