Leaving school today I looked up to see the branches of an American Sweetgum Tree, also known as the gumball tree, festooned with the spiked fruit which gives the tree its name. It was so spare and graceful against the late afternoon sky, it resembled a sample of Chinese calligraphy.
Unique shot. We have 2 sweet gum trees in our yard and I know I should appreciate their beauty but they leave such a mess in our yard almost year round what with the pods, leaves and something else....can't remember what ;-) One thing they are sturdy trees, except for the branches during a wind storm.
