Standing outside I feel the wind blow on my cheek sending a quick shiver down my spine. I quietly walk down the steps of the porch and look to the right. I notice the rabbit sitting still by the tree and slowly approach. Not to close, but just the right amount to witness the movements of the creature, yet not scare it off. I look up from the creature and look around to see the wooden cage that surrounds my house. Within that cage lays Pine trees, grass and the stump of a fallen American Beech. There’s also a tree with a history that lives in the suburbs of the Graf’s backyard. This tree is where the rabbit hides when it senses danger approaching, it’s also the tree that was planted when I was brought home from Russia. The Lee-land Cyprus was planted on 11/04/2000 and has been growing ever since. It represents life in the most cheesy way possible. When the weather stirs and causes havoc sometimes things get knocked down. The Lee-land Cyprus has experienced this time and time again, however, we never stop putting it up and we will continue to watch it grow like all the people who have had a glimps of its life.

The place from Virginia to Shelburne has dramatic differences from the soil to the people. In Virginia the land is cultivated and industrialized to the max to utilize the space for human life. In Shelburne human life is a factor, however, I sense the land is valued almost as much as the human life. I have watched the Cyprus tree/ecosystem in my backyard change through out the seasons since I was one. As the seasons change from fall to the winter the grass starts wilt and the pine trees/Cyprus leaf structure maintains its integrity. At my phenology spot in Shelburne the change from fall to winter was dramatic. The atmosphere in Vermont is a lot colder than Virginia leading to a more dramatic change in the ecosystem. This drastic change is shown by the leaves changing colors quicker and the tree trucks becoming bare sooner. When I walk into my back yard I feel contained, but in Vermont I feel that there is a never-ending tree line that I can follow to the mountains. The people that live by my phenology spot back home are more money driven and the people who live by my phenology spot in Shelburne seem more in touch with the environment around them. This attitude towards life takes a toll on how the land is taken care of and maintain.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/1415+Powells+Tavern+Pl,+Herndon,+VA+20170/@39.0000972,-77.3788073,41m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x89b63829e33812df:0xa05b035f2ccda7be!8m2!3d39.0000972!4d-77.3786705