Fallen Tree

This is one of my 'spontaneous' poems.

 

I got the idea for this poem one afternoon on the bus ride home from school. I was staring out the window, just thinking, when the bus stopped at a place and right outside my window was a fallen tree just lying there on the roadside. I was staring at it for a few seconds and out of nowhere the lines for this poem came up! Of course, these aren't the exact lines I thought of then. By the time I got home, those precise words were forgotten. But the idea was still there, so I sat down and wrote from what I remembered.

 

FALLEN TREE:

Once so tall you stood

O’er my head.

Now you lie in my path,

Dead, fallen.

I trace the cracks along your body

Wondering what a shame it is

That something so majestic

Could become a state like this.

Your age old brown

Was once heart warming

And gave me hope

Each every morning.

Now I eye your

Ashen figure

Searching for life,

Some hope or other.

What cut you down

Was not a storm

‘Twas nature’s own

Demon born.

Then humans that had

Cut you down

Pushed you till you fell

And now

As creation’s greatest mistake,

They plunder through your home

And take your friends and family down.

Oh fallen! You are not alone!

I search, frantic, for any sign,

A little hope, not much.

Alas, your rotten, muddy bark

Lies abandoned and as such.

Then I see it, tiny details.

Ah! To some, you’re still a home!

To ants and squirrels and such

Nothing is lost to bemoan.

And lying across my path

You now bring me a little joy,

For even as a fallen tree

Your helpfulness isn’t destroyed.

 

 

I feel this poem has an important message to convey. About life, death, and hope. But more importantly, the last two stanzas indicate that the tree, though dead and forgotten by humans, was not abandoned by the little creatures that still need it. The dead bark was still of use.

 

We humans should learn from trees. Actually, not just trees. We need to learn from nature. There are valuable traits we can afford to accommodate into our daily lives. And all it takes is a little observance. Take a moment to understand how the universe works. Take a moment and observe its beauty.

 

I guarantee you it's worth it.