Sacred?

The huge oak leaves on the ground here are from the group of trees planted as a memorial more than 30 years ago.

In some ways it seems a pity that foreign imported oaks were used when the English oak has always been considered the most important native tree. And of course there are numerous native examples nearby that look more natural in this setting. Funny that we English celebrate the oak as our tree having destroyed so many of them over the centuries, using their timber for anything from naval ships to chests of drawers; other nations have adopted it for the arguably more civilised use of wine storage. You feel some other nations might have regarded their national tree as being sacred and untouchable. Adventurous childern who love climbing may always see the act of cutting down an oak as sacriligious. But instead of calling the oak a 'sacred' tree we are more likely to see it referred to as 'iconic' - a fashionable and overused word that should be banned for the next ten years?