Poetry

A Tree Finally Speaks

Diwata17 Comments

A Tree Finally Speaks

“Trees are poems the earth writes upon the sky, we fell them down and turn them into paper, that we may record our emptiness.”
― Khalil Gibran

 

One night…

 

Me: 

In the absence of wind and mist

Who cradles your branches and leaves to sleep?

 

Tree: 

You!

Come near,  exhale 

 

Me: 

I haven’t brushed my teeth

My breath stinks

 

Tree:

Grab a leaf

Scrub it in your mouth

And let me kiss your lips

 

Me:

You are crazy, tree!

 

Tree:

Hahaha look who’s talking to me?

 

Me:

Yeah maybe I’m crazy

 

Tree:

Seriously

Don’t ever think I sleep

I’m always awake

I breathe

Or else you’ll decease

 

Me: 

Do you suffer from giving grace?

 

Tree: 

Hold and touch my trunk

You’ll realize

 

Me:

Rough, whittled and mutilated

 

Tree: 

Still I stand

Tall

Even after the storm

If the storm is too bad

I’d fall

What’s worse?

I’d be a firewood or charcoal

Then ashes scatter through the air

To the land where I could grow again

 

Me: 

You are a hopeful tree

 

Tree: 

No, it’s the cycle of nature

From nothing to something

I said it in a simplest form

 

Me: 

You make me feel stupid

 

Tree:

Oh human you are not stupid

But ironic breed

 

Me: 

Huh?!

 

Tree:

You see

If not firewood or charcoal

You turn me into paper

And you all say

“SAVE THE TREES”

 

Me: 

Indeed, it is ironic…

 

17 thoughts on “A Tree Finally Speaks”

  5. Thanks for this beautiful piece, so powerfully yet simply written. You’ve touched my heart. Thanks also for the like of my little poem/picture “Odysseus”. A little like goes a long way.
    C.

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  8. You have a way with trees and flowers Diwata.

    Come to think of it, there’s a touch of mist and moonlight in your animated gif too.

    Not Wicca yourself are you? 😉

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    • Come to think of it, there’s a touch of mist and moonlight in your animated gif too.
      – ahaha you noticed it 🙂

      Not Wicca yourself are you? 😉
      – No, I am outside of any religious/spiritual groups. But I want learn and spend sometime (if given a chance) with Amondawa, people who live deep in the Amazonian rainforests of Brazil with no concept of time or day and live their lives to the patterns of day and night and the rainy and dry seasons.

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  9. No, I am outside of any religious/spiritual groups

    Isn’t that kinda rare in the Philippines?
    I thought the people there usually identified pretty strongly with their religious community – mostly Catholic. I often wondered if the NPA were atheists like Marxists are supposed to be or whether they were liberation theology Catholics like a lot of the Sandanista.

    But I want learn and spend sometime (if given a chance) with Amondawa

    You’d better hurry then. Last I heard their numbers were finally recovering but only the old people maintain the culture with the kids trying to become ‘modern’ ASAP.

    My people (Aborigines) had a very different concept of time to Europeans. We believed the ancient time of creation and today were interwoven. Except for a few pockets of mostly old people the ability to conceive of time that way is lost now, but there is still widespread resistance to ordering our days by the clock (I never wear a watch myself but my grandfather had an amazing way of pacing his life that emanated patience and serenity).

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    • Hi Cabrogal,

      Good to be back in WP ahaha I intentionally did not get online so I could focus on learning to play the guitar (fingerstyle) 🙂 I’m still clumsy though.

      Rare as it may seem, my grandma called me “evil” one time for not going to church. But the good teaching of the Catholic church is in my heart. There are things I believe in, but my beliefs are not cast in stone. I’m still learning 🙂

      About NPA, last time I heard of them was long time ago. Honestly, I don’t know about their core beliefs.

      I don’t think I could see Amondawa sooner, I have got no money to travel 😦

      It’s nice that you know people/someone who have different way in conceiving time.

      My grandfather has an amazing way of pacing his life that emanated patience and serenity
      – How does your grandfather do it? It’s interesting.

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      • I intentionally did not get online so I could focus on learning to play the guitar (fingerstyle) 🙂 I’m still clumsy though.

        I spent years practicing guitar and never got over my clumsiness. When I finally joined a band they listened to me play for a few minutes and said “Maybe you should try the bass”.

        If I’d been comparing myself to Filipino musicians I probably would have given up in despair. You’ve got a lot of fine instrumentalists on those islands of yours.

        My grandfather has an amazing way of pacing his life that emanated patience and serenity
        – How does your grandfather do it? It’s interesting.

        Beats me. He’s gone now so it’s too late to ask.

        From what I was told he had a temper in his younger days but as far back as I can remember he always went calmly and patiently about everything he did – from putting his viewpoint to building a house to growing a crop of vegetables. Even his many medical problems near the end left him unfazed. I like to think he was rooted in the rhythms of the land itself, but I’m just speculating really.

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Go ahead, speak your heart 💖