Cherry Tree

Growing up around my Mom's Mom's house, Grandma's house, I really enjoyed all of the trees. She had two really big walnut trees and one big cherry tree. She had other trees on the property but these were the biggest and best climbing trees in the yard. When I was young and small I would become jealous of my older sister and cousins that were bigger and could climb these trees. I was left to climb the smaller ones. I would beg my older sister to help me get to the first branch on the cherry tree because I thought that after I got to the first branch I could climb the rest of the way to the top. She never helped and always said I was too small. I would run to Grandma and tell her my troubles. Grandma was four feet, eight inches tall. Even with her slight frame she was still taller than me. Grandpa on the other hand was six feet, two inches tall. He towered over all of us. Anyway I would run to Grandma and she would tell me the same thing my sister had. I was too small and I would get stuck in the tree. If I got stuck who would get me out again she would ask. I told her about my superior climbing skills. I begged her to help me or tell my older sister that she had to help me but it never worked. As I grew I finally was able to climb the cherry tree. I was so excited when my hands touched the first limb. I joyously jumped up, put my arms around the branch, and proceeded to climb up the tree. I got all the way to the top and could almost see over Grandma's two story house. What a wonderful place to be. I could see over the big garden Grandpa had. I could see into the neighbors yards. I could see my younger and smaller brothers and cousins trying to get up the tree. They begged me to help them. They told me they could handle it once they got up the first branch. They went and begged Grandma's help just as I had done. They got the same answers I did. Well one cousin had an idea. She went and grabbed a metal bucket and stuck it under the first branch. This made her tall enough to reach that first branch and she proceeded to climb. She got up the tree and proceeded up to the point where I was in the tree. When she got almost to where I was she looked down. Now as I mentioned I could almost see over Grandma's two story house so we were "way" up in the sky. Well she looked down and proceeded to be afraid of heights! She hugged the trunk of the tree shut her eyes real tight and began to cry. I teased her a little. I told her to stop crying. I even tried to help her get down. She would not let go of the trunk. The wind blew a little more and the tree started to sway. This only made it worse. So I climbed out of the tree and went to Grandma. I told Grandma that Cousin and gotten stuck in the cherry tree. I told her about the metal bucket she had used to get to the first branch. Well Grandma all four feet, eight inches, went over to the tree and climbed up. She was probably the best tree climber I had ever seen. She went up so quickly and easily it was amazing. She went to Cousin had her hug Grandma instead of the tree and proceeded to climb back down. My Mom and Cousin's Mom and other adults came outside to see what all of the commotion was about and saw Grandma, all four feet eight inches, up the cherry tree.