It’s the middle of January, and Jimmy is freezing.

“Brrr, it has been SO cold this week,” Jimmy chatters as he and Clarissa exit the math building. He drags Clarissa with him.“Hey! Look at that big tree. Let’s sit under there and warm up.”

As they huddle against the tree trunk, Clarissa is reminded about her newfound knowledge of trees. “It’s pretty funny you say that Jimmy, because I was just learning about Lexington’s trees! They’re pretty nice, eh?” she grins, knowing that Jimmy is about to get an earful. 

“Where should I even begin?” she says, laughing. “Well, for one, did you know that 60% of Lexington’s land is covered by tree canopy? In fact, we’re actually gaining tree canopy. In just seven years, Lexington has gained 321 acres of canopy!”

Jimmy pauses, thinking. “Hm, that sounds like a big number, but I just can’t seem to visualize it.” 

Clarissa, with the help of her trusty TI-84, replies, “Well, our net gain is the area of about 243 football fields! But wait, let me blow your mind again. Did you know that our town has a Tree Warden? 

“Like… the one in Minecraft?” Jimmy is flabbergasted. 

“Well, not quite,” Clarissa giggles. “Our Tree Warden is appointed by the town and cares for all the shade trees on public lands. Massachusetts was the first state to mandate a Tree Warden for every municipality back in 1899.”

“Dang, I didn’t even know that we had a Tree Warden. Okay, you’re kinda getting me interested in this tree stuff,” Jimmy admits, smiling. 

“We actually have a lot of cool trees right here at LHS! See those four in the middle of the quad? Those are American Elms, our state tree!” Clarissa says, drawing a square with her finger. 

“Aren’t those the ones that were almost wiped out by that nasty fungal disease?” Jimmy asks.

Clarissa nods in surprised approval. “Yeah, good memory! Dutch elm disease is just one of the many invasive tree pests and diseases that threaten our urban forests. Between this, the emerald ash borer, and beech leaf disease, our trees have it rough. And climate change isn’t helping things—it makes it easier for these pests to survive the winter, plus, it’s just an added stress.”

Jimmy nods, pulling out a tissue. “I feel that. I have the senior sniffles—I’m so busy trying to survive college apps and the second semester that my body can’t fight off all these viruses. Wait, speaking of viruses, what are those things hanging from that tree near the orchestra room? They look like wooden coronaviruses!”

“Haha, you’re right! That’s a sycamore, like the one in The Alchemist. It has this cool mosaic-like bark.” Clarissa says. “But trees’ benefits extend beyond just looks,” she adds, “they also improve mental health, speed up recovery from sickness, and have even been linked to lower crime rates.” 

Clarissa looks over to Jimmy, but he doesn’t buy it. She gestures to his phone. “Look it up! There’s tons of research to back me up on this.”

Jimmy puts his hands up. “Okay, okay! So you’re saying if I want to recover from this cold faster, staying inside my room all day with the blinds closed isn’t the best strategy? Oh right! My parents were also telling me how much lower our electricity bills have been since we planted this big tree in our front yard. How does that happen?”

“Remember those buffer solutions we learned about in chemistry? Trees are kind of like that. When it’s hot in the summer, they keep us cool by shading houses, but in the winter, deciduous trees lose their leaves, letting the sun in. And they can actually help keep heat in by blocking cold winter winds!”

“Hey, if trees are so great, how come not every neighborhood is covered with them?” Jimmy asks. “My friend Larry, who lives in Boston, has never had a tree outside his house! His poor heating and cooling bills!”

“You’re right. That’s an issue of tree equity,” Clarissa solemnly responds. “Our state is working on solving this issue one tree at a time by prioritizing planting in neighborhoods with low canopy cover. The Lexington High School area has the lowest tree equity score of 93 in all of Lexington! That’s not even an A+!” 

Jimmy rolls his eyes. “Average Lexington. Oh wait, but I’m looking up the area where Larry lives—they only have a C. Wow, this isn’t fair, huh.” 

After a moment of silence, though, Jimmy’s stomach overwhelms his thoughtfulness. “Hey Clarissa, do you want to go to Tatte and grab a snack? I’m in the mood for an almond croissant.”

“There you go! Another reason we love trees.”