“And when he was tired, he would sleep in her shade.
And the boy loved the tree… and the tree was happy.”
–The Giving Tree by Shel Shilverstein
Apple Tree Orphan
Among the green majestic towers
Beneath the canopy looking for sun
A young tree grows
Discarded by its owner
Thrown from the pot
Considered waste and unfruitful
The parents of the forest
shed and share
their bark bits
until the tiny tree’s roots grow
The rain brings nourishment
The animals’ fertilizer
The worms’ compost
Slowly the tree grows
Slowly the flower buds emerge
Slowly the fruit is exposed
Years pass
A hungry mind walks by
Thirsty for fruit
Ready for fruit
The tree once discarded
Has become nourishment for another
Thanks to the ways of the forest
Yet its forest family is confused
We take care of our own
Little tree, why must you
Give up your fruit to anyone?
The tree thinks on this
“I am a fruit tree standing among firs
Your fruit is pine cones, mine apples.
If you knew how tasty they are
You would not wonder why
The fruit lover desires apples not cones”
Little tree, you grow food
That you have no mouth for.
You will never bite into your own apple.
Why would you grow?
Why would you thirst for sun?
Why would you bring forth fruit,
Just to have another eat it?
“My food is in the soil.
My warmth is from the sun.
My joy comes from another’s satisfied smile
At my job well done.”
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| Yarn Bombing in Germany |
shannon p. laws 