The Lesson of the Oak

 The Lesson of the Oak

The oak towers above the forest

It's fellow arboretum members

Gaze upward at it's height

It's branches supported

By a many-ringed trunk

Bark scarred by years gone-by

It's broad leaves shimmer 

In the gentlest breeze

And hide the noonday sun

Children play in it's shade

A carved heart and initials

The memorial to long lost love

For 150 years it's watched

The change of time

In the earth and it's animates

Day's sunlight and night's storms

Summer's green and winter's white

All feed the cycle of it's ageless life

In spite of it's stature

And immortal defiance

Of lifetimes and time

The source of it's strength

Hidden from human eyes

Reaching deep into nourishing soil

Patiently bursting stones with

It's ever deeper growing

Depths equal to the highest branches

Dwelling in the cool dark earth

Fed by earthworms and decay

Drinking in the purest rain

It stands proud, tall and true

Regardless of the scarring

Of branches severed by life's winds

It stands upward reaching

Undeterred by time or pain

A monument of determination to life

The source of it's strength 

Is not in it's size or beauty

Or any of the things apparent to us

The source of it's strength 

Is under our feet and unseen

By our simple eyes

The source of it's strength

Is it's unwavering, ever-growing 

Clenched fist on it's foundation