Growth Direction

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“Very few of the drivers bothered to look at me, not even a seeing glance. They seemed, indeed, not to see me anymore. They merely stared ahead. They seemed to believe that they were ʻgoing somewhereʼ” (Le Guin, p.455).

Those words of the Oak-tree from Ursula K. Le Guin´s short story “Direction of the Road” came to my mind one morning, though I was walking not driving)) through Hirvepark (deer park) near Toompea in Tallinn, Estonia.
                          

  
And it was not the oak-tree but an amazing maple tree with silver leaves that draw my attention. Having come closer to it I noticed a metal plate under the tree, which confirmed that it was the Silver Maple (Acer saccharinum) indeed and what is more interesting - the tree was planted in 1836. The strong green maple looked young for its 136 years.

          
                                  
Photos by J.Sarmina

Looking around, I noticed some more trees with metal plates beneath them. Among them there was a flamboyant Norway maple with red leaves (Acer platanoides ʻSchwedleriʼ), planted in 1898.

                                                                                      Photo by J.Sarmina

Along the escarp wall over the footpath, there were a black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia), which is considered to be an individual with the oldest trunk in Tallinn, and European larch (Larix decidua), planted in 1937.

                                  
                       Photo by A.Zubkova                                                       Photo by J.Sarmina

Judging by the signs, all the trees were quite mature, from 80 to 130 years old. Once again the phrase from Le Guin´s story bubbled to the surface “For fifty or sixty years, then, I have upheld the Order of Things, and have done my share in supporting the human creatures´ illusion that they are ʻgoing somewhereʼˮ (Le Guin, p.456). It became really interesting what “order of thingsˮ the trees in Hirvepark have witnessed, what their history was.

The history of Hirvepark turned out to be quite long and interesting. It dates back to the middle of the XIX century “when the park area was rented to the Estonian Horticultural Society with the aim to build a presentable dendrological garden and an arboretumˮ (tallinn.ee, 2018). In 1881–1890 some species of conifers were planted in the park, mainly the spruce and pine. However, in the beginning of the XX century foreign and exotic species of trees were successfully grown in Hirvepark. There was even a plan to turn the park into a botanical garden (tallinn.ee, 2018).

Today, Hirvepark is a pleasant place with meandering walkways and small meadows to relax and enjoy the nature. All in all, there are 102 different types of trees grow there. There is also quite large children’s playground and many interesting sculptures in the park. Together with the old city the park is included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage, not only because of its botanical or aesthetical values. It is a momentous place of the restoration of independence of the Republic of Estonia. In 1987, for the first time, people gathered there openly, presenting the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact between Germany and Russia and advocating the liberation of Estonia from the power of the Soviet Union.
                                      
                                                                                   Photo by J.Sarmina


Unfortunately, in recent times, it has become increasingly obvious that a free market economy is generating consumerism, which, in turn, is destroying nature. People in Estonia are more and more worried about deforestation and concurrent climate change. According to the article published for Climate Home News by Arthur Nelson on 16/01/2018: “Estonia’s logging volumes have almost tripled in the past decadeˮ (Nelson, 2018). EU´s norms and standards demand from the Baltic states to burn biomass in huge quantities. “This raises fears among conservation scientists of a catastrophic spike in deforestation under the banner of renewable energyˮ (Nelson, 2018).
                        
Photo source: https://news.mongabay.com/2017/10/estonias-trees-valued-resource-or-squandered-second-chance/

All this problems show people´s carelessness in respect of their own future and the future of all living creatures. The words of the Oak-tree from Le Guin´s story sound fatefully on this evidence: “If they want to see death visibly in the world, that is their business, not mine. I will not act Eternity for them. Let them not turn to the trees for death. If that is what they want to see, let them look into one another´s eyes and see it there.ˮ (Le Guin, p.457).

Walking around Hirvepark, so vivid and colourful in autumn, I still want to believe that people, like trees, are able to grow in the right direction - towards the light and the continuation of the life on earth.



                   
                                                                                                                    Svetlana Hatšaturjan


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