Trees
by
Radiance Angelina Petro

Oak, magnolia, ash, willow–
such sensible names for trees.
They carry their vowels

in the breath of their leaves,
and their consonants live
in their biblical branches.

Their roots help bind the world
together, and their proportions
lead by example. Who else

would let hives live in their hair,
and let hornets hang paper nests
from their fingers? Who else

would welcome katydids and frogs,
woodpeckers and hawks
into their home? Who else

could change and let go
so effortlessly? Who else
would let cicadas climb

up their bodies to scream?
And who else could get birds
to sleep on their arms?

Each of their seeds
is a godling, each of their
sways helps move the wind,

and when the end comes who else
will open their bodies and let us live inside
until the sun shines again?