I was working in the back of my house, trying to figure out the best way to make a raised garden, when the sound of one beast of an engin in front of our communal gate put a sudden terrible fear into my heart! The pepper tree! I ran to the front, and there was my very dapper neigbour conducting  shouting conversation with a man behind the steering wheel of one monstrous truck. What made me suddenly feel cold to the bone, was that this truck had a huge crane on the back, and judging from the very satisfied smile on my neigbour's face, I knew that the old Pepper had come to the end of its three hundred years of growing, and living, and throwing its dappled shade far and wide over the surrounding areas.
I was badly affected, and ran over to beg with her one last time to leave the old tree be. She was by now very excited, and told me to just leave her alone, as it was after all her tree! I was in one big mess, told her that she did not have the correct information, as I have told her a few times before this day, but I could see that no begging was going to save the tree, She just looked at me, and said; 'You want it, take it!' sweeping her hand as if she was a bally king! Oh, I was sick with anger, and sorrow, and when at last the truck was in position, with big props on either side to steady it, I went into my house and drew the curtains, then I cried, both from sadness and frustration.When the awful sound of a huge saw started screaming, I looked out of the window, and my heart just broke. A huge branch had been cut off, and was hanging in the air, held by the giant claws of the crane, and it then just dropped it without respect onto the back of the truck!I then closed the curtains, vowing not to look again, and after a while there was a loud knock on my door, and I opened it to a hugely emotional Ronalee. She had heard the noise, and thought that a branch of the old tree had maybe fallen onto Joy's house, and was being removed.She sat with me for a long time, until the machines stopped, and when we looked out of the door and there was just this empty space, both of us wept. It was a long time since I have been so cross, and sad, and when the operator of this monster truck greeted me, I just looked right through him. He knew very well how I pleaded with Joy not to do it, but he just went ahead.
Ronalee left, and I just wanted to run away! Then there was a knock on my door, and it was my neigbour, with the sweetest smile on her face, asking me to come over for a glass of wine. As this was the first time ever she had asked me into her house, I knew that she felt maybe a bit guilty, or whatever, so I told her that I was not in the mood to drink wine with her!
This tree trunk was almost six meters around! What a terrible shame!