So Imperfect

Tree

Are you one?

Are you many?

I chose you second

You still gave me shade

My mind wandered away from you

You still gave me shelter

I murdered your sisters

You still engulf me with ancient wisdom

So deeply rooted

So imperfect

Bark peeling off

Pieces falling down

Shedding needles

Spreading cones

Branches heavy

Some broken

Some cut by human hands

Holes everywhere

Wrinkles everywhere

Like my great grandmother

Without the suffering

So imperfect

And so allowing

Flourishing

Slowly

Yearning for the sun

Yearning for water

And not really asking for much, whining, or complaining

So imperfect

What you have gone through

What stories you would tell

What lives you have supported

What storms, droughts, elements you have faced with natural great peace

So imperfect

I lay my pen down to be with you

I silence my tongue to hear you

I quiet my mind to understand you

So imperfect

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During a meditation retreat in August of 2022, we were asked to walk in nature and see if anything speaks to us. I eyed a tree that seemed grand and interesting, but as I walked towards it, carrying a chair, I became tired and the sun was a bit too strong, so I “settled” for a closer tree that was not as interesting or as beautiful, and I sat in its shade. This poem was the download that followed.