He planted the trees thirty years ago with his friend Ed Wing, who was a gardener at Smith. These seven venerable cherries were planted by our neighbor, Danny Maguire, who has lived in 6 Warfield for seventy-five years and who worked in the Smith College gardens and grounds for most of his life. A few years ago, the USA garbage truck slammed into the redbud, and although it is making a valiant recovery, it too is slated for destruction, along with all the trees on this side of the block. And in addition to these seven, the three younger trees on the end of the block-a redbud, a younger Kwanzan cherry tree and a Montmorency cherry tree-have said that they would like to be ordained, too! These three trees were planted by our neighbors Terry and PJ. We are here today to ordain these seven venerable Kwanzan cherry trees that the City currently plans to cut down as part of a controversial and, we believe, ill-conceived repaving project. Editor’s note: Below are opening remarks delivered by Kanshin Ruth Ozeki, novelist, Zen priest, Smith College professor, and resident of Warfield Place, followed by an abbreviated description of the ordination ceremony, and concluding with remarks delivered to the trees by Kosen Greg Snyder, senior Zen priest, co-founder of Brooklyn Zen Center, and Senior Director of Buddhist Studies at Union Theological Seminary.
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