Tree-hugger. When you read those hyphenated words, an image likely comes to mind immediately. Probably someone in sandals. Cut-off jean shorts. Greasy hair. Round glasses. Peace symbol imprinted on a tank top. Am I close?

Whether those descriptions fit you or not, you should hug a tree. We all should. If you haven’t, you are missing out.

OK, maybe hugging trees isn’t the exact action, but climbing them sure is. I did a lot of that as a youth, as we had a massive tree in our yard. Mom called it a boxelder bug tree. I am not sure if that is the proper name or not, but the boxelder bugs sure liked it. I did, too, and I tried to climb every branch on that tree. Lots of hugs.

That practice helped me to became quite good at climbing trees. I could have lived in that tree, if Mom would have allowed it. I would have built one of those clubhouses like the Honeycomb Hideout, but only in the tree. What young boy didn’t want that? As much as Mom disliked that tree, she disliked the thought of having scrap boards cluttering up her yard even more. And she probably realized that my treehouse would have been a not-so-artistic sculpture of loose nails and splinters, resulting in her having to doctor me up. In hindsight, she may have been right.

Years later, as a young adult, my friends and I were staring down a large tree outside of my apartment. Of course, one of them bet that nobody could climb that tree. And, of course, I took the bet. The apartment complex was four stories tall, and that tree was every bit the same height. I scampered up the tree in a matter of seconds, bragging loudly from the top. Then, as I scampered down, one of the branches snapped. All I remember is thinking, “I should be hitting the ground by now… I should be hitting the ground by now… I should be — splat!”

Luckily, I landed on my feet. Unluckily, I compressed and cracked a number of vertebra. My heels weren’t looking so great either. About a year later, after I mostly healed up, the same friend who issued the challenge told me I was going to have to cut that tree down. I almost took the bait, but, to my surprise, someone else cut it down first. I don’t know who it was, but Mom swears it wasn’t her.

The fall from that tree ended my tree-climbing days, except for the time I tried to climb a palm tree while in Florida. That was another bet that didn’t go so well, but this time, fortunately, I didn’t make it up very high. I did give that tree a serious hug, though, and based on the number of scratches I had, it hugged back quite seriously, too.

Through my many tree-climbing experiences, I learned one thing: You might be able to take the kid out of a tree, but you can’t take the tree out of a kid. Happy tree-hugging.

Have a memorable Monday, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman
President and Publisher
Big Green Umbrella Media
shane@dmcityview.com
515-953-4822, ext. 305
www.thedailyumbrella.com

See Shane Goodman's previous columns here.

SPORTS PREVIEW
Menace soccer team is Des Moines’ connection to the world

By Jim Duncan

It’s called “the beautiful game.” Soccer has been known as joga bonito since 1970 when Brazil’s national selection won the World Cup with “total football” teamwork that has been emulated ever since.

Interestingly, the Portuguese term joga bonito is used all over the world but not in Brazil, where the same style is called futbol-arte. Beauty or art, no other sport is loved world-wide like soccer. And with its 90 minutes of constant movement, no other sport is as creative.

Competing for time
Residents share how relationships are the “win” in sporting together.

By Chantel Boyd

While most members of Melody Rose’s family enjoy swimming competitively, her son, Abram Reels, decided he would prefer to try a sport that doesn’t involve getting in a pool. He chose fencing.

Although Reels is no longer as nervous around water as he once was, it was that trepidation as a child that led him to find his passion for fencing.

Though fencing has its roots as a combat sport, modern fencing puts safety at the forefront with protective equipment and complex rules. It is now a sport of finesse.

These celebrities were born on this date: Adrianne Palicki, Alan Dale, Chris Shiflett, Jose Altuve, Mark Bryan, Meek Mill, Noah Galvin, Roma Downey, Angel Reese, Aryan Simhadri, Meek Mill, George Clooney, Naomi Scott, Sadie Sandler, Chris Paul, Emily Alyn Lind

SUBMIT: Send your birthday greetings and congratulatory notes to: tammy@iowalivingmagazines.com

The answer to yesterday's riddle:

What do you do if you’re ever attacked by a gang of clowns? GO FOR THE JUGGLER! - Gail Tomlinson. Other answers from Rex Post, Carolyn Rogers

Today's riddle

What do you call bragging chess players in the hotel lobby?

Have a guess? Email tammy@iowalivingmagazines.com

To advertise in the Daily Umbrella or Winterset Living magazine, contact:

Kristine McDonald
Account Executive
Office: 515-953-4822 ext. 321
Mobile: C: 515-975-3543
kristine@iowalivingmagazines.com

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