Jackie Tackles the Great Mysteries of the Universe, #2: Knot that poor tree!

Are knots on trees embarrassing? Do the trees try to pretend they aren't there, like pimples?

Perhaps the northern pines, with their low, full branches, make fun of the pimply, adolescent oaks with their bumpy trunks.

Maybe, though, the once-thriving branches represent to the oak trees lost limbs, symbolic of paths not taken. Or perhaps their ill-fated attempts at branching out haunt them as constant reminders of what was, what could be-- a phantom limb of a tree that grew past its initial failures.

I'm not sure how trees really feel about their knotty pasts. I just know that if I had arm nubs lining my abdomen, I probably wouldn't stand as proud as a magnificent oak.