Virgin Mary visits Houston by way of North Shepherd: Do you believe in the sightings?

For residents of Garden Oaks, North Shepherd is known primarily for the CVS, the Sears and the post office . . . but a tree bearing the shape of the Virgin Mary across from Bally Total Fitness is quickly becoming the neighborhood's most recognized landmarks.

CultureMap visited the site this weekend and, within the first five minutes, no less than three cars slowed to a near stop on the busy thoroughfare to view the uncanny outline of the Holy Mother.

From a distance, the scene resembles a roadside memorial — a tidy pile of flowers and candles beneath a foot-and-a-half long scar in an oak tree just feet from the street. And, for years, property owner Kyle Toland though it was just that.

"The first thing that drew my eye was a lady and daughter taking pictures," property owner Kyle Tolan d said. "I could see them from my living room. I had no idea what was going on."

But in 2009, he noticed the tree was getting more and more visitors.

"The first thing that drew my eye was a lady and daughter taking pictures," Toland told KPRC Ch. 2. "I could see them from my living room. I had no idea what was going on."

Then he saw the image for himself and the steady stream of visitors made sense.

"Most of the people that come by keep it in very good condition," he explained, saying he didn't mind hosting the popular attraction. "They will rearrange everything to make it nice and pretty.”

The Virgin Mary, of course, has been no stranger to Texas, having revealed herself to unsuspecting passers-by in a variety of forms within the past five years:

• El Paso, 2011: An apparition of the Holy Lady appeared in Alex Guillen's backyard during a party he was having for his 50th birthday.
• New Braunfels, 2010: Residents at an apartment complex witnessed a glowing outline of the Blessed Mother on the side of a building on several occasions.
• Bryan, 2009: Citizens gathered around a truck whose sideview mirror was hit with bird droppings displaying the miraculous shape of the Saint Mary on Dec. 12, the day La Virgen de Guadalupe is celebrated.
• Houston, 2007: Cafeteria workers nearly ran out of the kitchen after seeing an image of Mary burnt onto the surface of a pizza pan.