The Willows

The willow tree was bigger than the house we lived in

Its roots stretched far underneath the cement we called a patio
causing tributaries to break through the surface

I thought it was majestic

Its willows danced in the wind

There were those who missed the allure of the dance. They focused on the loutishness of the footwork

They saw the tree as destructive. A menace to the very foundation of our home

One morning I awakened to the snarl of a power saw. Laboring for hours, they dismantled God’s gift to our patch of the world

They hauled away the broken branches, whose very beings were severed from the life blood of the tree.

Its glory gone, the stump stood, lifeless, a headstone in an empty cemetery

The home, now safe from the reaching roots, looked stark and naked

Who would provide safe haven from the rain

and shelter from the sweltering summer sun?

Who would dance in the wind?

MKC