Gemotions

“It's not a big deal,” his wife had said, attempting to soothe him. But it was a big deal. The request to take down the redwood, a towering sentinel on the property line, felt like a personal affront.

He found it difficult to concentrate at work. His mind kept returning to the image of the tree falling, the sound of the chainsaw, the exposed earth. He felt a constant low-level tension, a tremor beneath his skin.

He walked around the house, checking and rechecking everything. He felt a profound sense of instability, as if the very foundations of his life were about to shift.