And All the Time That You Are Alone

 

Alone you escaped, from a tangled forest long gone

Now here you stand leaning, bent with countless years

drawing water solely from the mist… Alone

Once a sapling

young dreams with which to grow

to get you through the harshest drought

and storms as they scarred you

into growing a steely bark to survive… Alone

Once you met conquistadors

they leaned against you and laughingly, wet your trunk

You gave them shade during their stay

and sadly watched footprints blow away

Spanish rust still caught within your roots

Alone… You are in history

Perhaps you met Columbus

and knew the native Indians

who draped raw fish over your limbs

and wet your trunk once more

now a picnic spot beside the sea

And all the time that you are alone

is marked in rings around your heart

sadly watching all footprints fade away

and you knew that you’d always be… Alone

Throughout all time

you proudly show the grandeur of trees

and of those times we have shared

I wonder, if you’ll always remember me

now bent with so few years left to be

we both alone, each sharing our history… Alone

Once you shaded me and stood guard during my rest

Gentle breezes rustling your iron leaves

baring a great soul, within your bonsai form

Hypnotically, I got to know you well

over times we each talked and listened

and I learned how to understand

nature’s language, spoken in ancient tree

throughout all time alone, part of history

leaning into the harshest storms, happy to be… Alone

Bent from countless years

of sandy loam and prevailing winds

weighed down with silent wisdom

you embrace the ebb and flow of tides

changing times and changing seas

beyond the reefs breaking surf… Alone

You like nocturnal laying turtles

digging at your feet, knowingly

you offer safety to their offspring

vigilance while counting the grains of sand

that blow in and out of your world

and you, forever giving shade to strangers

and those dying few who know you well

all proud to be part of your history

seeing great beauty in this ancient tree… Alone

 

And here you are… Alone

on the cusp of all tomorrows

May nature always highlight the beauty

that lets your ancient spirit soar

across more time, perhaps another century

showing all those who meet you, that alone

is not always, as it seems

to an ancient tree, once escaped

from tangled forests long ago

now residing, beside an ever changing sea

Alone… this wise soul

will always be… forever free

_________________________

* Words by Rob Pearldiver *

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