Curt, this is one of my all-time favorite stories on Medium - and I have read a lot of stories here. I am in the midst of a "tree obsession", reading a variety of books about trees, including Finding the Mother Tree by Suzanne Simard and The Heartbeat of Trees by Peter Wohlleben. Reading this story about your connection to this particular tree was heartwarming and confirmed the relationship of trees with humans. We are connected deeply and fully. Congratulations for having such a faithful tree friend!