Trees and Life

Trees are majestic creatures

whose roots dig deep into earth

as they search for

sustenance, balance… life.

Above the ground its trunk, over time,

grows wide & tall,

as if to flaunt its strength and

honorable place in nature.

Its branches reach out into the sky,

seemingly in search of wisdom and,

as the seasons come & go,

they reflect the bareness

of necessary solitude,

followed by bursting green leaves

that  proclaim the beauty of life.

And then, in time,

we witness in awe the emergence of

orange, yellow, and red leaves,

visible agents of change.

Oh magnificent trees that teach us

how at times our own lives

need be lived in necessary solitude,

with brief interludes of bountiful living,

followed by crucial, perhaps painful,

passages of change.

Only then can we, from season to season,

recalibrate our lives,

knowing that therein lies

our wisdom, honor, and strength.

                                                            © Mildred Santiago 2015