
author's note:
“Green leaves–you may believe this or not–
have once or twice
burst from the tips of my fingers.”
-- Mary Oliver
THE GREEN FEATHERY TREE
I chopped down
the green feathery tree
because I wanted control
over all my kingdom--!--
but as if to spite me
the green feathery tree
shot right back up
so
I yanked its stubborn feet
and long toes
from the ground--!--
but then the soil washed away--
the earth itself ran from me--
with nothing to stand on
I slipped all the way
down the ravine
and at the bottom
the water, in disgust
quickly evaporated.
Thus, I gasped for breath
as I flopped in the mud
on the dead riverbed--
somehow I'd lost my limbs--!
Finally, in desperation
I began to crawl on my belly--
began to wiggle my way up
the slimy cliffside--
wanting only to return
to where I had been
and in the process
of struggling to gain a foothold
I sprouted hooves
then legs and feet
and while trying
to grasp the rocks
I grew arms and paws
with claws
then fingers for those nails
and though this growing
caused me much pain
the higher I climbed
the higher I wanted to climb--
having lost the earth
I'd come to love the Earth
and the more I loved the Earth
the more I loved the sky
until the wings of this love
sprouted from my spine--
at first, these wings worked
and strained
then they learned to glide.
But once the wings had lifted me
to the clouds
my love of the Earth
brought me back down--
set me down
on the ledge of the ravine
and because I was so happy
to see the Earth, the Earth
welcomed me, embraced my feet
and long toes--the water flowed
back to greet me--!
But though rooted again
I still yearned for the sky--
thus, my limbs grew up
and my fingers leafed out:
in this way, I live
in both places at once
and no longer play king--
instead, I stake my place
as strong humble servant.
© 2012, Michael R. Patton
dreaming stepsLabels: aspiration, control, desire, environment, growth, metamorphosis, Michael R. Patton, new age, poetry, spirituality, transformation, tree