A TREE planted more than 100 years ago, during Queen Victoria’s reign, has inspired a grandmother’s poem.

Mary Lockhart lived near the tree in Haddington’s Memorial Park before moving to Port Seton.

The grandmother-of-five highlighted the importance of the Sequoiadendron giganteum tree to her.

She said: “It looks like it is cuddling you.

“It depends how you are going into the park.

“It has got this great big, thick branch, like a thick arm, and another arm.

“There are pictures of me standing next to it.”

East Lothian Courier: Mary Lockhart was inspired to write a poem by this tree in HaddingtonMary Lockhart was inspired to write a poem by this tree in Haddington

The 74-year-old, who worked in Ideal Garage in the town, used to visit the park with her grandchildren and enjoy picnics.

However, the tree was also there for her during one of the most difficult times of her life, more than 20 years ago.

She said: “I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer on the Thursday and my husband took his own life on the Saturday.

“It was absolutely horrendous.

“I used to live in Haddington and I was grieving.

“I used to go sit beside the tree.

“I think it is just beautiful, absolutely beautiful, and I would encourage anybody to just go and touch it.”

East Lothian Courier: Mary Lockhart was inspired to write a poem by this tree in HaddingtonMary Lockhart was inspired to write a poem by this tree in Haddington

Mary, who lived on Haddington’s Station Road, has dedicated the poem to her late husband John.

She told the Courier how poetry had helped her in her school days.

She said: “There was a teacher that did not like me.

“She used to hit me because I wrote with my left hand.

“She used to hit it with a ruler and tie it behind my back.

“When I went up to the bigger school, I could not read or write and what that made me do was learn to read and write.

“I can read anything but I could not write and so I would write a word like ‘when’ or ‘they’ and I would write it out about 100 times until I got it in my mind.

“Then I started writing poems.”

 

The Tree, by Mary Eve Lockhart

You are the most beautiful tree

You are 123 years old

You must have seen lots of children

Climbing on your branches over the years

From the 20s to 2000s

Through war and peace and all the lovers kissing under you

And writing their names in you You open your arms and have cuddled us all these years

Happy Birthday to you tree well done

I hope you stay forever

I will pass away but you will last forever

Don’t destroy me or knock me down to make paper books like the Bible

To make tables and chairs for the Kings and Queens to sit on and big ships to go foreign places

Paper to write love letters on, homes to live and fires to keep us warm

I would like you to grow big and strong

I know you are 123 years old but I want you to live for hundreds more, be a strong tree as you have been strong for me.