The Gift of a Dying Leaf - Poetry

The Gift of a Dying Leaf

Here, take this, she said. 

You were here

8 months ago, you were here. 

Stopping 

Stopping in your tracks to admire me

Stopping in the hustle 

Stopping toward your goal

Being. 

Breathing. 

Admiring me. 

Taking in my beauty. 

I know I shine most beautiful in spring. 

My pink buds stark against the green and blue everywhere 

Stark against my brown branches, trunk, roots

You were here. 

You stopped. 

We chatted. 

You saw me. 

I remembered you, of course. 

From last year

And the year before

Many stop

Many admire

No one else sees me. 

No one else hears me. 

I eagerly await your visits every year

I ponder in advance what I will say

‘Which of my infinite wisdom do I want to share with her this time?’

It’s here

It’s aplenty 

It is infinite 

It is free

The true riches of the world:

Nature Wisdom

Yet the world goes on not seeing

The people continue in haste, listening only to their technology or the bustle 

Only you stop

Only you see

Only you listen

And only you receive. 

Infinite wisdom available for all 

And yet they worship their anxious thoughts and fearful perceptions more

The nature wisdom is almost gone

With not many left who know the language 

Go. 

Teach them. 

Go. 

Show them. 

Nature and human, all the same. 

What they seek has never left. 

Been here the entire time. 

Now is the time to awaken the nature wisdom from the Earth. 

It is the way forward. 

A vibrant future is coming. 

Let’s cultivate it together. 

by Jenna Heim