.
Tree Frog's long silence
Thunder, lightening, pouring cool rain...
Tree Frog's voices sing
Under an apple tree a man stopped to rest,
It's delicious fruit he began to injest.
The shade provided protection from the sun,
Like that apple tree there has been none.
It aided a weak and tired man,
who in returning the favor had no plan.
It's branches formed a shield of protection,
Almost a human-like form of affection.
The man left without any sense of appreciation,
Yet the tree had just saved him from starvation.
Many years passed by and the man returned to the tree,
That day, to the man's ax his death the tree would see.
THE HAWTHORN BRIDAL DRESS
Gone the winter of empty arms ,
Her fresh face is radiant with charms.
In the church garden fair,
One glorious May day near the ides -
Blossom on gown, hair,
Bosom and bouquet - the bride’s
Glowing in the warm embrace
Of her golden groom. She flowers
With bloom on her cheeks and face;
Then, in light petalled showers,
Blossom -confetti litters and turns
To white the path through her roots unseen.
Then the hawthorn tree returns
Again to her everyday working green .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
NOTE
The hawthorn tree in bloom in May is a beautiful sight, but lasts only a short time, like
a wedding celebration. Hawthorn trees are known as May trees, and they appear in the
proverb “Cast ne’er a clout till May is out.” Many people think this means you must
keep wearing winter clothers till the end of the month of May, but it really means until
the May tree’s blossom-flowers are out.
(Here endeth the lesson.)
What’s That Horrible Sound?
By Elton Camp
If anywhere in the South you reside,
You’ll hear it now if you go outside
From every direction it seems to come
That loud, incessant maddening hum
On the trunks of the trees you will find
The brown exoskeletons they left behind
A metamorphosis the insects underwent
So that wings and red eyes nature sent
It’s the males that now call out so loud
They’re finally able to mate, so are proud
Thirteen years they spent in the ground
Till, at last, mating time has come around
But after mating, they live only a few days
In the small tree branches her eggs she lays
Tips of the branches die and fall to the ground
Offspring, for thirteen years, a tree root found
From the Cicada we have really nothing to fear
They won’t sting or bite even if we come near
Much worse things there certainly could be
Than millions of Cicadas singing in the tree
A MIGHTY OAK
"to hold, as 'twere, the mirror up to nature" William Shakespeare, Hamlet, 1601
The mighty oak tree is strong all the way to it's roots.
The mighty oak a place the leprechaun hides his loot.
The mighty oak tree is my shade in the summer time.
The mighty oak keeps me cool when the sun shines.
The mighty oak tree has beauty beyond compare.
The mighty oak has alot of years to share.
Teresa Skyles
Entered in Constance La France~A rambling poet~The tree contest
Thursday, 21 April, 2011
Tree contest
4/20/11
Roxanna Johnson
"To hold, as 'twere, the mirror up to nature."
****
Branches sway
in this warm season of early May.
Hot sands and bare feet
sounds of ocean waves cool the afternoon heat.
Cold drinks and lawn chairs sit underneath my special tree.
This is the happiest I'll ever be.
Lying here with large palms shading my eyes
I watch boats on the emerging tide rise.
This tree provides shade on hot days
it soothes and comforts me in some ways.
It is a beautiful tall palm tree that makes me smile.
Now I think I'll just lie under it for a long while.
The willow tree
the willow, the willow, the wisest tree there is
so beautiful with such a story to be told
whether old or in youth
the willows always speak the truth.
With their dangling branches and vines
it's no wonder they are fine
the willow, the willow,
the wisest tree there is.
Jasmine S. Turner
Tiny winged creatures
flit from tree to tree
perch on tree branches
preening breast feathers
wee plump bodies
Fee fee-fee fee
delicate songs
bird orchestra
they serenade
Feathered friends
entertain,
we listen
Fee fee
sweet song
Birds
The maple tree leaf
Sheens of white upon them lay....
Crystalline manna
Grass lying beneath
Sticky to tennis shoe sole....
small sounds as I walk
The diligent bee
gathering, gathering, fast....
Quiets at twilight.
INTERJECTION:
Some would not return to the hive.
Too heavy to fly,
to far to crawl.
I’m sure they will die...
Inspired by a hive of hornets, deluging
a huge maple tree in my back yard,
which is weeping sap from the leaves.
Feb 2011 Charles Henderson
I fell in love with a tree stump.
A quite curious stump was he.
No branches to thump.
No fall leaves to see.
But a very special stump was he.
There in the woods, other trees grew tall.
Swaying their limbs and leaves in the breeze.
But one special tree stump won my awe.
Once, tall and stately was he, before the freeze.
Now, short and sad hearted because of the saw.
I was weary, downhearted, and lonely.
When, I spotted that stump beside a pile of wood.
A perfect place to rest, it seemed to me.
I rushed right over as quickly as I could.
Then, sat right there, relaxed, and feeling so good.
While trees all around made their showy stance,
I sat and enjoyed from my comfortable stump.
He had no limbs nor leaves to wind-dance.
He had no branches to thump.
He was there for me to rest myself…by chance.
Pining alone, I fell in love with that tree stump.
A quiet refuge was he.
No longer sad, life became plump.
And my soul soared higher than one can see.
For he was there when I needed him…and he needed me.
© October 28, 2010
Dane Smith-Johnsen
It's the place where we sit
And play a game of cards.
The biggest stump ever,
In any of our yards.
Once it was a chestnut tree
With branches ever so high.
They reached across the yard
And way up to the sky.
It was where a tiny crow lived,
"Elvis", the children named him.
He fell out of the tree as a babe
But was safely put back on his limb.
City officials hated the tree.
Their wires ran through it's branches
And with their power and telephone
They wanted to take no chances.
So the tree came down one day
And was chopped for firewood.
It heated the house the whole winter
Just like a good tree should.
All that's left is the stump now,
It's about four feet across,
So we can sit here and play cards
But it's still our yards biggest loss.
for Matt Caliri's "I fell in Love With a Tree Stump Contest"
The tree and the vine in perfect harmony
Growing together the way it should be
Their lives cross like veins of life
Yet they stay together through natures strife
In general they are, in the world we live
Although their are some who never forgive
They can suffocate, consume with a passion
Leave life so frail, grey to ashen
Then there are us humans, well what can I say
We are so like them in every way
Even we can live in harmony
Unlike the tree and the vine, more we should be
http://www.thehighlanderspoems.com/life-11.php
O! My Tree!
The tree around I played
With leaves very pointed
Being bitter. others hate
Necessity brings nearer
Mosquitoes are prevented
Skin diseases are demolished
Germs run away with pace
And I feel missing when away
It is the tree I love
Where love expressed Dove
Monkeys jump, pigeons rest
Cows eat, churn and rest
All enjoy shadow and taste
Fully inside the heart
I have a corner
Very special for it.
by:-
Vrushani Thaker
For four-thousand years and more
He’s withstood the tests of time;
Extremes of heat and cold
Haven’t cut him down in his prime;
Even now he proudly stands
As a testament of endurance,
The elements sure can’t defeat
This tree of majestic stance.
This Californian Bristlecone-Pine
Stands high up in the mountain range,
How it manages to survive there
Leaves us gasping, it seems so strange;
How it’s lived for millennia
When other trees have long since died
Is truly amazing to consider,
Such tenacity can’t be denied.
On so dry and thirsty a terrain
This tree seems but to thrive,
A resilient nature for sure
Helps to keep it so alive
And, within its tough bark,
In the very heart of the tree
Must be a durability
Of the highest degree.
Yes, the oldest living thing
On our Planet Earth
Is a magnificent tree
Of such invaluable worth.
A grand, visible display
Of what determination can do;
A symbol of a great survivor
For us all to look up to.
The maple tree leaf
Sheens of white upon them lay....
Crystalline manna
Grass lying beneath
Sticky to tennis shoe sole....
small sounds as I walk
The diligent bee
gathering, gathering, fast....
Quiets at twilight.
INTERJECTION:
Some would not return to the hive.
Too heavy to fly,
too far to crawl.
I’m sure they will die...
Inspired by a hive or hornets, deluging
a huge maple tree in my back yard,
which was weeping sap from the leaves.
May 24 2010 For Rick's "Haiku You" contest
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