February 22, 2019 - Vijaya Sundaram

Archive for February 22nd, 2019

Lines Written to A Brave, Ancient, Bonsai White Pine*

©February 22nd, 2019

By Vijaya Sundaram

What atmospheres do you keep close

Hovering like a sigh, a collective gasp

Clasping your roots, even as your needles

Cling to branches, and your nimbus

Exhales secret memory that rains down

Again and again, keeping you alive?

How lonely it must be for you,

Bereft of brothers and sisters,

Bereft of animals to shelter in you,

And yet, you grow and grow

Because you might be the last,

And you might last forever.

Alone, you stand, proud white pine

Tall in your mind, close to the skies,

Taken far from your land, handed over

To those who sought to destroy it,

And alone, you grow strong, live long,

Because that is the ultimate answer.