And speaking of monkeys........

Look how high this little punk gets in this tree!





I'd be very terrified if I hadn't spent all of my growing up years in the tops of very tall trees in my yard.





We had several different species of trees in our yard and each was climbed for a different purpose. For example, there was one tree that had very long branches that reached up to the sky and they were very flexible. This tree also had little tiny orange berries on it that delighted us each year as we'd watch the birds fill themselves up gluttonously and then we'd laugh with delight as we'd watch the poor birds plumb drunk trying to fly. This tree in particular was great for swaying. We'd climb to the very top and then grabbing onto a sturdy branch start pulling our bodies back and forth until we had the top of that tree literally bending in half. Back and forth we'd sway harder and harder. I can only remember one casualty. My older sister fell and it was as if I were watching a cartoon as she went from limb to limb to limb bouncing all the way down like a pin ball. No broken bones. It was all that fresh cows milk. Strong bones for strong activities.

Another tree that we had which was my absolute favorite was a Japanese umbrella tree. That is what we called it anyway. I've no idea what it's real scientific name is. It is shaped in the form of an umbrella and the branches and leaves are such that they wind threw each other and are quite close together thus forming....welll.....duh.....an umbrella. You could climb up the tree and sit on top of the branches and leaves and not fall through which I think if we did we probably would have broken bones.

The hours we spent playing either under that tree or in its branches or on top of it. It was my tree. My dad took photo's of me at quite a young small age in its nether most branches......no surprise that my punks have taken to the trees. Not when they have a gorilla for a mother.