The Tree

• Zoe Lemlin, Grade 6, Balgowlah North Public School
• Poetry
• 2015

2nd in the 'Read Write Repeat 2015' competition

Wind rustles my soft, delicate leaves
Rain stains my twiggy branches
Every day of summer, the children swing on my old arms
Every day of winter, I hear their cheerful voices as they play in the snow
Every night, I hear a happy couple chatting in the fading light
And I know... they will love me forever
As the years pass, I watch them cripple
I realise that I too am growing old
One day as I listen to the children playing, I hear another sound
The crying of an ambulance breaking the calm
Red flashing lights, the crying of an old man... Silence!!
I feel the dirt being shovelled
And my life-long friend is placed by my feet
He kneels at the grave, weeping
As I wrap my roots around her tiny coffin
Keeping her close to me forever.