that grew together, roots entwined,
and that you know the earth and the rain like my mouth,
since we are made of earth and rain.
~Pablo Neruda
In honor of Christie's tree Poetry Friday round-up, here are three tree poems...
To the Fig Tree on 9th and Christian
by Ross Gay
Tumbling through the
city in my
mind without once
looking up
the racket in
the lugwork probably
rehearsing some
stupid thing I
said or did
some crime or
other the city they
say is a lonely
place until yes
the sound of sweeping
and a woman
yes with a
broom beneath
which you are now
too the canopy
of a fig its
arms pulling the
September sun to it...
read the rest here
*******
Schrödinger's Tree
by Madeline Sebastian Burtenshaw
If it were dead,
you'd burn it.
Scatter ash to the winds, to the sea,
silent life buried in a shroud of earth.
If it lived, you'd take
the harvest in a black bowl:
first fruits, sweet and sustaining,
blood and honey for juice...
read the rest here
*******
I AM ROTTING LOG OF WOOD
by Marlena Chertock
not thin, healthy twig.
My branches creak and groan
under gravity’s weight.
My bark is full of termites
eating away my pith-cartilage.
I can’t stand a full day
in the forest like the other trees,
so straight, so tall.
A few minutes in the forest
and the fire ants start
chewing my bark...
read the rest here
*******
Thanks, Christy, for hosting the Poetry Friday round-up today!
10 comments:
My favorite part of this post: that girl-in-tree picture! What a poem that is! xo
That's Elena :-) She is a poem.
Love the variety/stages of tree poems! Irene's pencil should fit in there nicely somewhere.
Three different choices that send my mind wondering. The last one could be the narrator's inner thoughts about being human-very interesting perspectives, Tabatha.
Lovely image of Elena she looks like she's in her environment. Ross Gay's poem is gorgeous, I can picture the scene as it unfolds and feel the emotion running through it. And an interesting p.o.v. from Marlena Chertock's tree poem, thanks for all Tabatha.
Love these poems Tabatha. The first one reminded me to check my fig tree to see if I had any more ripened fruit. (Alas there were none) Marlena Chertock's made me want to weep.
I’m wanting some figs! They will soon be here. Love the photo
I'm kind of in love with that rotting log. It kind of might be me (sometimes). :-)
Such vastly different takes on tree poems, but each one engaging. Especially loved the Ross Gay... and who can pass up a poem like Elena?
You always find the best stuff. I loved the fig tree in Philadelphia.
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