o Climb a Tree

ome time ago Baron Von Lodge was the head of a small country near Switzerland known as Lilliland.

The Baron’s staff at Lilliland Castle kept expanding as the country took on more responsibility. One addition to the business office was Robert Hale. Robert and his wife, Sally, were often invited to the various royal receptions. They added a fine complement to the representation of the castle staff. They were very kind and considerate. Several times a month, the Baron would invite Robert to the Baron’s impressive office for morning coffee and a chat about many things.

One morning during their chat, the Baron noticed a picture in the newspaper of Robert’s wife, Sally. It was a picture of Sally climbing a tree in the mountains. When the Baron asked Robert about this tree-climbing incident, he replied that Sally’s hobby was climbing trees. She wore all the proper mountain climbing fear but instead of climbing mountains, she liked to climb trees. He said that when Sally was very young, her parents would tell her to “go climb a tree.” It was meant figuratively, but, as a child, Sally must have thought that it should be taken literally. So, little Sally would go into their backyard and try to climb the tallest oak tree. Eventually, over her young years, she was very successful at climbing the old oak tree.

On dates with Robert, Sally wanted to take trips into the mountains and climb trees. Robert thought that she would outgrow this hobby after they were married. It seems that she did not.

Later, the Baron was speaking with his fiancée, Lady Angela of Alpine Castle, about the tree-climbing picture in the newspaper. The Baron asked Lady Angela for her opinion. She said, “If it were a man climbing a mountain, he would be considered a hero. So what is really the difference between climbing a mountain or climbing a tree?”

The Baron thought more about the picture and what Lady Angela had said. He thought that Lady Angela had a point. Since Robert said that she was careful not to hurt the tree, and that she wore proper safety gear, it was fine.

Nothing more was said about the picture. If Sally enjoyed climbing trees, then she should climb all the trees she wanted. It could be considered an outdoor sporting activity, like mountain climbing, anyway.