The Dying Tree

A dog threatened asks not why he’s under attack He bears his fangs and snarls right back When a river is blocked it feels no heartache It keeps on rolling until the dams break   A duck has no sorrow when chicks leave her side Whether instinct or knowledge she takes it in stride A squirrel will not dwell on nuts never found He knows there are many more in the ground   The tree that is dying laments not its fate It does not regret having begun too late It has no gods to curse and no tears to cry No future to mourn nor past to deny Would that these lessons were not lost on me But mine is the burden of humanity July 23, 2018