Trees, Steve Loved

Steve's Words:

The driver, the
trees, the sun and the seasons.

Yesterday I named three favorite winter trees at 86th and 5th Ave -
"reaching, curling and spreading".

I've gotten so I love trees. When I first got my glasses in about the fifth grade, I came out of the
optometrist's to realize that I could actually see the individual leaves. I had come to see trees as little kids draw
them - circles of green on trunks of brown.

It was before disease stripped the Midwest of its American elms, which really did make cool arched boulevards of our
modest main streets. Old towns now look like denuded suburbs.

Before that only many decades or the big winds near tornados
could kill off a few of them.

In my backyard there was a huge one which took several kids
to touch hands around.

When we learned to get to its lower limbs with a rope, we
began to build a tree house in a very high crotch. My dad took over and built a
big, solid one, much lower down. For beams he used the varnished hardwood
pieces of a big old pipe organ, which had just been replaced in the next door
church where he was pastor. He did not view little kid helpers as actually
helpful or safe, which I understand, but also regret.

Today, in New York City, I often reverse "you can’t see the forest
for the trees". Here they stand
more isolated, individual.

In winter we can see the fabulous differences of their limb
structure. Since they've been cared for and pruned over their decades of life,
I sometimes wonder if an old arborist could say, "Now that's pruned in the
Mendelssohn manner. And you can see O'Neal's work in that one."

The isolation and care of our trees in Central and Riverside Park and around the Natural History museum may
explain why we enjoy some of the few stands of these magnificent trees which
remain in North America.

We all enjoy the first leaves in the spring. The green that
will later seem uniform at first has great various beauty, just as the fall
dying leaves draw bus tours to Vermont,
but may be less noticed in the midst of our city.

Then of course there are the many stages of a tree's cycle
of renewal that each species present to us as the days grow longer, and then
shorter.

If we look up close, we can see the wonderful little
structures that nature has constructed over ages to give each tree the best
chance to live on.

Horse Chestnuts are my favorites. Lindens are good too.

As well as the changes over the warmer months, each day
trees present many different views to us. At high noon, the shade of their
leaves cools us, but obscures the tree's details.

But as the sun lowers, its light cuts between the leaves and
lets us glimpse the structure that we love so much in winter.

These are things I've learned to see over time as I grew
older. Who says there’s nothing to look
forward to. Just like the little piece
of white paint that looks like a gold ring on the finger of a Rembrandt
portrait.
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Mike Ruscigno's Speech at Steve's Memorial


Mike’s Speech for Steve Kindred 2/8/2014

Things I do remember about Steve.  I first saw Steve at one of our New York TDU meetings. I had no idea who he was. Steve came walking in late and took a seat with the rest of us green horns.  As the meeting progressed, Steve’s hand was in the air most of the time when our group was asked a question.  But he was never called on.  Whoever was running the meeting would even avoid Steve.  A few times I almost said, “Hey, pick that guy, I think he has your answer.”    After a while, they finally had to call on Steve.  And that’s when I found out why they saved him for last.   My god, could he go on and on and on.
Since he was one of the co-founders of TDU, he had a hell of a lot to offer and tell us about Teamster reform.  The best part would be when he finished speaking and sit down.  But before the instructor could turn around, Steve would jump back up again, “Let me say one more thing.  I promise I will sit down and shut up.”  Then, with all his enthusiasm he’d bellow out, “By golly if we don’t win this, which I know we will, it won’t be for lack of trying. OK?  I’ll sit down now.”

I also worked with Steve, as a lot of you have, during the Carey campaign, the Leedham campaign and the Pope campaign.  When I would go with Steve, it would give me a great deal of confidence.  Being with someone with such experience, but also a feeling of “Aaahh oh! Anything can happen today.”  
So here we all are at the Philly UPS Air hub.  I was up by 3 a.m. to get there at sun-up.  We had our pop-up tents, tables, flyers and petitions to sigh.  We were ready. Hundreds of Teamsters pass through here all day. We were at the entrance to the parking lot and to the building.  I turned around and here comes someone walking from the back corner of the lot.  He has his backpack, thermos, flyers in hand.  He’s ready.  Someone says, “Isn’t that Steve Kindred?”  I say, “Yeah, did anyone see him drive in?”  No!  He comes up, everyone says, “Hey Steve, good to see you, glad you’re here.”  
Secretly, deep down in me, I wasn’t glad he was here.  A matter of fact, when I first arrived and didn’t see Steve, I was relieved that he wasn’t there.  You see now that Steve Kindred is here, we have to stay until mid-night.  Steve will never let you go home.

Now mind you, I could campaign with the best of them.  But Steve had a fire in him that would not go out.  So I say, “Steve, how come we didn’t see you drive in here. Where were you?”  Steve says, “Oh, I got done late campaigning yesterday. So I just drove here, slept in the car, so I could meet you guys this morning.”     I thought, Oh, my god, he’s not going to let us go home.  He slept in the parking lot!   
We finally all left that night, with Steve, after we convinced him that a good night’s sleep in his bed was good for the cause.  Steve knew how to push for Teamster reform.  And he knew how to push reformers.  Even though you’re not with us any longer Steve, the fire for Teamster reform will keep burning because you have put it in our hearts.  

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Thanks for your input to the Steve Blog. Learning about him through one another's stories is something we can continue to enjoy, beyond his passing. May his vision, work and passions live on through our paths, and be invigorated by our stories, sharings, and dialogues.
Thanks, from niece Audrey Kindred

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