The Big Tree

-When I was a child,
We lived at the end
Of a long road
And a big tree grew there,
With leafy limbs stretched high and wide.

-It’s Winter branches
Would shiver in the cold,
And we would keep it warm.
-Fresh Spring rain
Rattled the lush canopy,
And played like a tympani.
-The Summer gave us shade:
Great golden boughs
Kept us cool on hotter days.
-We dropped from dangled branches,
Like crunchy leaves
In the chilly Autumn breeze.

-The tree was safe
When playing tag,
But a trip over roots
Gave an occasional bruise.
-Ants were crushed
By fingers and toes,
Climbing it’s trunk.
-Sticks and twigs
Scraped and scratched,
Band-aids were a badge.

-One afternoon,
Hai fell from the highest limb.
Took his breath
And the wind from his sails.
-The big tree
Was scary
On that day.

-Years later,
After I’d grown,
I visited
The old house
On the long road.
The road was tiny,
the house was small,
and the tree was gone.
It stays big
In my memory.