Along one of the trails through the Fredonia college woods is a stand of more than a dozen very old beech trees. Etched into the trees’ smooth gray bark are scores of inscriptions, many of them names of once-young lovers. One massive tree measures nearly 4 feet in diameter at its base.
It also bears the largest etchings, some of which I can assume are two or three generations old – students of the ‘60s, ‘70s or ‘80s. As the tree has grown over the years, so have the inscriptions. The boldest and most artful testament to young love on this great beech is titled Matt + Kerry, adorned with a heart that has also swollen through the years.
So you might wonder, who are Matt and Kerry? It’s fall semester, freshman year. Matt comes from Buffalo, Kerry from New York City. They meet in a music appreciation class and discover that they live in adjacent dorms, their windows facing across a courtyard.
They begin meeting for coffee at the student union cafeteria. Late one night, Kerry uses a flashlight to Morse-code Matt from across the courtyard. They sneak outside after curfew , cross the star-lit athletic field, and enter the woods.
It’s late October now. On the branches above them a few remaining leaves click and shiver in the quiet breeze; beneath, a tapestry of leaves covers the forest floor, a bed of many colors and future memories. One evening during Christmas break, Matt drives from Buffalo to Fredonia.
Armed with a marker, chisel and hammer, he returns to their trys.
