I want to be a tree in the woods
Where my branches reach rough and tumble
toward the sky
And tangle with the leaves of neighbors.
A tree with a child’s uncombed hair
Where vines climb
And moss points the way home.
Where survival is both fight and collaboration
In the struggle, we share all we have.
In a storm, the forest trembles together
The one shelters the other
And no tree quakes alone
This is really beautiful, Christen. I love your upward, outward, entangled gaze. It is real, complex, ambiguous. Not compartmentalized or neat and tidy. I find myself asking, “Where does my tree end, and another begin?” I am my own tree, but I am not — especially when I consider the even greater tangle of roots underneath, and the ground itself. Maybe that’s where your next poetic gaze might go — downward to the unseen foundation. Wherever it goes, I’m sure we will enjoy it!
Thanks, Russ! I like your thought about the roots.
I like it, too, especially the last line, and the bit about fight AND collaboration.
Thank you, Marcy! I appreciate hearing specific parts that people like.
I once heard a celebrity say that women have to be like willows when they are married. For some reason, this poem reminded me of that! (ie flexibility)
I love willows. But I think I’d rather be something a lot more solid! Not that flexibility isn’t great…
Come and tangle your branches in our trees here in North Carolina! I feel like my language fails to try and express my affection and concern for you, my friend.
Thank you, Becca. I appreciate it.
Oh my gosh, I LOVE this!!! “Where no tree quakes alone.” This is so beautiful, Christen. The last three lines knock it out of the ballpark, and the imagery of a tree with “a child’s uncombed hair” is perfect, very unkempt and visceral. This is a really strong poem. I like how hopeful it is, how firmly it moves upward. (If I were studying it in English class, I’d probably be making some sort of polysyllabic and pretentious comment about all of the height imagery–branches and leaves rather than roots, hair rather than feet, the use of the verb climb, etc., but as a non-student, I’ll just say that I think it’s a really solid poem.) Great job.