The legend of a spirit living in Matsumae's oldest cherry tree
An ancient cherry tree over 280 years old, which according to legend is home to a spirit. Legend has it that long ago, when a cherry tree was to be cut down for lumber to repair a temple, a young girl appeared at the bedside of the resident priest asking for kechimyaku (writings needed for the dead to pass on to the afterlife). The next morning, the priest discovered the writings in the leaves of the cherry tree, and realizing that the girl was the spirit of the tree, chose to spare the tree.
