My Soul is Sad

I have a beautiful elm tree that sits between my property and my neighbor's property.  Unfortunately its dead, it was attacked by elm beetles.  I've always loved this tree because it has so many branches branching off into so many different directions.  I imagine a deer stepping on its stump when it was young and splitting it in to three branches, growing in three directions, each branch sprouting several more branches in all directions. 

We had very eclectic neighbors when we first moved here, the Maloney's.  They were history buff's, they recreated a General Store at the turn of the century in their basement--food cans, people, cash register and all.  Mark once told me he loved tree's more than flowers because they are such beautiful living beings.  In the winter you can see the beauty of their branches, naked without leaves.  Majestic and tall, the growth look like veins pushing out sideways and up towards the sky.
I'm so sad my tree is dead.  In the summer it provided a lot of shade.  I'd sit in my chair by the window and stare straight up at the long long limbs.  The tree was over 70 years old and will cost $3,000 to take down.  The tree man said there are virtually no Elm tree's left in NJ due to this beetle.   My soul is so sad.  Feel like a friend is gone.  But my backyard is still magical.  :(