I am the Magnificent Maple. My family is the most beautiful and picturesque of all trees. From season to season, my beauty and value are measured and recognized in so many ways. Imagine the pride in having a professional sports team named in recognition of my family. The Toronto Maple Leafs.

I get even more pride when I see one of the largest countries in the world, Canada, adorn their flag with my Leaf as their symbol of love and loyalty to country.

Entire industries have been formed, directly related to my characteristics. In the fall, people flock from the cities and drive into the country to see my fall colors as the forest changes from the summer to winter season. I even have Companies sell countryside tours, so my fall foliage can be viewed by countless admirers. During this same season, landscaping businesses sell their services to help property owners clean their lawns from my fallen beauty. My leaves turn into many brilliant colors, from crimson red to golden yellow and all types of shades in between.

Our fall beauty is captured on post cards and calendars throughout the world. When our leaves fall, we are, oh so silent, as we drift and float through the air before nestling on the ground. We make a neat rustling sound when children, parents and pets play in and amongst us.

The maple syrup industry harvests my sap and boils it down to a heavy rich topping for pancakes, muffins, glazing hams and other varieties of prepared food. The scent and aroma of hot maple syrup has peaked everyone's appetite at one time or another.

In the forests, my leaf-laden branches are home to many of God's creatures. Birds and animals nest in my trunk and amongst my branches, surrounded by my strength, foliage cover, concealed and protected from the elements.

There are many species in my Maple family. The Sugar Maple is best known for offering sap for Maple syrup. The Norway Maple is very popular to adorn landscapes due to my full and leafy branches and my predictable symmetrical growth upwards. The Red Maple is also common in landscaping, in part to the deep violet colored leaves.

When I am harvested, my hardwood is used in kitchen cabinets, and in furniture for homes and businesses worldwide. I am a highly desired hardwood and I don't need an introduction or explanation. My grain accepts stains well for custom finishes. It is my hardness that makes me preferred for many roles. I resist scratches, dents and telltale wear signs. I also am commonly used in flooring. My trunk has distinct coloring. The center core is about half of my dimension. This center core area is a deep dark brown color. The outer portion is a pure select white color. Very distinct, yet separate colors that contrast. This is similar to a deer, which has a white underside and a much darker fur on the upper body.

As I look upon my past, it is a full life, reliable for many, in so many ways. Once harvested, my living role ends, and my duty for eternity begins. My wood can and has been used to make almost anything. A challenge I pose in the furniture industry is how to best utilize the contrasting colors of my trunk. In large diameter trees, 4' or so, the various colors can be more suitably milled to create individual pieces of material. When separation of my colors is not practical, my natural colors are masked, by staining my wood to a consistent even color. This is what happens to me in the manufacturing furniture world. Few people actually get to see the full range of colors in my natural state.

On my harvesting day, I did not for see being used as cargo platform. I was milled to 4" square sections, 12' long and bolted together with 4' cross-sections. I was an awesome powerful platform. Sheets of galvanized steel, 12' long, 4' wide were stacked on me. Stacked to 4' high, I was carrying 3 tons of metal. For years, I was moved from steel mill to fabricator and back as I was used to ship and store these sheets of steel. In this role, I could be in fabrication facility for years at a time. When emptied, I have been tossed outside. I have been left in the rain and snow, frozen in the winter and baked in the hot summer sun. Oil, grease and grime seeped into my exterior. Recently, I was loaded and sent to a new fabrication facility. This facility did not recycle the cargo platforms. We were discarded. As I watched, discarded cargo platforms, similar to myself, were cut up by employees and taken to summer camps and burned in campfires. Over the months, as the steel sheets I was holding were being used, it was going to be sometime soon when my load would be depleted and I would be tossed out. Who would cut me up, taking me to a summer camp and set me on fire? Would I at least get to roast some marshmallows?

On this particular day, when my last sheet of steel was used, God's will bestowed upon me eternity. I was tossed outside with a few other similar cargo platforms. This "new location" where I had been working had been a favorite hunting ground for a wood working enthusiast. I learned that he comes here often. His fee for authorization to remove us is a 12 pack of Labatts Blue. Leave it to Canada to bestow upon the Maple family one more measure of dignity. Put the fire out! Have a drink on me!

I was put into his van, along with a few other cargo platforms and driven to his shop. Here I was carefully disassembled, cut into 3' sections, sawed and planed to ½" widths, stacked and stored. All the dirt, grime and oil that coated me had been removed. I was stacked neatly with other pieces of rescued hard wood in the Maple family. In this workshop there were shelves for Oak, Mahogany, Cherry, Ash & Beech, all stored right next to me. Over the next few weeks, more pieces of wood would come into the shop, carefully milled, sorted and stacked.

Eventually, the pieces of Maple in my pile were removed from the shelf. I was placed on the worktable, and aligned side by side. In the next few days we were glued together, sanded smooth and assembled. My form and future were taking shape. I was going to be a large serving tray. This tray was special. It was being made specifically for a person that liked my natural finish, complete with my contrasting color. It is highly unusual for my Maple family to not get stained. No more stains on my grain! My natural contrasting beauty would show for eternity.

As I was nearly complete, I saw that I was part of a three-tray set. I was the large tray and there would be a medium sized tray and a small tray. I liked how the other 2 trays would get stacked on top of me. I would still be carrying a load, albeit a small one. I was proud of our natural finish. To see my dark center core right next to the select white outer core, it gives me goose bumps, just thinking about it.

I have gone Full Circle. Before you now, my natural beauty has been skillfully captured. I will turn a bit darker over time, every so slightly. Simply care for me as your would care for any other hardwoods in your home or office. Please, share my story with others and invite them to visit me and other works from my Craftsman Creator at our web site; FullCircleWood.com

Maple, Serving Tray, 3 piece set.