Lychee Tree Sanctuary — Emily Hamilton Laux

Lychee Tree Sanctuary

From 2016-2021, I rented a bungalow on the West coast of Florida to spend time with my elderly father. The house, its yard and the neighborhood become a sanctuary during a period of transition and loss.

The yard is a humble acre surrounded by an old chain link fence, the grass an obstacle course of ant mounds. I sit out back and listen to jazz with my father, or gaze at the marvelous old lychee tree, a reminder of my years in Southeast Asia.

Here, in this fragrant space of orange trees, laundry lines and childhood memories, the tropical air comforts me. And then, when I spy the bougainvillea tumbling over the broken fence, I am revived by the scrambled up beauty of decay and new growth.