A Not-So Freewrite New Year's Challenge - What The Trees Said
In response to rensoul17 's
A Not-So Freewrite New Year's Challenge,
I have chosen to answer her post with the prompt "What The Trees Said" -
in poetic prose form - alternatively titled, "Why trees are silent"
that night, the trees gathered
a small huddle at first in grain fading light
four or six or three - groups of random spacing
strangers never notice what seems natural
but as dark set in their numbers grew
herds of eleven or more in clusters like mango
or young elk in heat pawing the earth
their tethered roots bulging with
ripples of discontent recklessly
whispering of the perils of growing
the seedlings lost on rocky soil
or sandy sharply slanting landscapes
rains that sail away fern, moss and lichen
how some flat-landers rated better sun
how they were hand fed water from nearby streams
(and no wonder they have fruit!)
the overcrowding and the culling
serving host to crawling vermin...
the list grew as fast as a seedling, leaves brushing pine
oak spoke with aspen spruce jostled maple tensions building
united in their purpose to invade and conquer the encroaching fields
by morning, all threats stood idle
waiting for animation
not one of them had dared to break ancient law
to replant on firmer ground -
as a dark forest they might have had a chance
but this fear was too deep
the elders settled back into the soil
sheltering seed and sprout
grumbles on their bark
several of the younger set had moved down-land
rooting on the grassy turf
but clearly still on edge
except for one lone beech sapling
too young to understand the awful repercussions
too foolish or naive to ken the rules of replanting
"harv, ya got some sapling sprung up in the middle of my vegeble garden!"
"not to worry, luv, i'll git luke to dig it out with the shovel after I chop it with the hacksaw"
there was talk the next moon
anger pored out like hot sap in winter
threats of an uprising
but many of the older trees remembered clear-cutting
selective management
and even tree-farmers
one old oak was brave enough to mention
the terrible fires
after that, little was said.
I hope you enjoyed my tiny precautionary tale. All photos above are my own.
Thank you for taking us into the world and life of these beautiful Aspen trees. I love trees with the white barks. It reminds me of back home in Memphis where one area of town was heavily populated with them. I only new them as Poplar trees which one of the main streets was named as well.
After reading your prose piece, I ventured further to google to see beautiful images of the Aspen Spruce which is in the family of the Poplar Trees.
When you spoke of the ancient law that the trees dare not break, I felt a kindred connection with the trees and understood better their plight of overgrowth, restrictions and limitations and the fact that they share the land with humans that won't hesitate to chop them down if they extend their present boundaries in the areas claimed by man.
This piece is masterfully created, and the original pictures are an unexpected plus, I would not mind living in the beautiful rural of Colorado. I am rambling on because I don't want to leave the feeling, and experience I received from reading this piece.
The rhythm, word choice, and arrangement of this poetic prose is superb @torico. Thank you for your entry.
Sounds like a Native american psalm
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This post has received a 0.14 % upvote from @drotto thanks to: @banjo.
You got a 9.00% upvote from @allaz courtesy of @torico!