I Love a Tree

 

I LOVE A TREE
by Samuel N. Baxter

When I pass on to my reward,
Whatever that may be,
I’d like my friends to think of me
As one who loved a tree.

I may not have a statesman’s poise,
Nor thrill a crowd with speech,
But I can benefit mankind
If I set out a beech.

If I transport a sapling oak
To rear its mighty head,
’Twill shade and shelter those who come
Long after I am dead.

If in the park I plant an elm,
Where children come to play,
To them ’twill be a childhood shrine
That will not soon decay.

Of if I plant a tree with fruit,
On which the birds may feed,
I’ve helped to foster feathered friends,
And that’s a worthy deed.

For winter, when the days grow short
And spirits may run low,
I’d plant a pine upon the ‘scape;
’Twould lend a cheering glow.

I’d like a tree to mark the spot
Where I am laid to rest,
To me ‘twould be an epitaph
That I would love the best.

And though not carved upon a stone
For those who come to see,
My friends would know that resting here
Is one who loved a tree.

Today I visited Conishead Priory where you can walk through gardens and woods down to the shore, and have a wonderful, panoramic view of the vast Morecambe Bay. 

In the woods are huge trees, I think some of them redwoods, and secluded places where you can sit in the quiet and stillness to meditate (Conishead is now home to the Manjushri Kadampa Meditation Centre), or simply observe their magnificence. The one pictured above was massive, with a wide girth and a knobbly, weather-beaten trunk. It seemed ancient and wise, and I liked to think it had been there in the days of the original priory, and seen many comings and goings.  

The poet Samuel N. Baxter was, I believe, an arboiculturalist, so knew a thing or two about trees. The last two stanzas echo my own thoughts.

Writing prompts:

• Write about a tree, or wood that you know. 
• Look at the photo - can you see the face? Imagine you are that tree and write about what you have witnessed. 
• Write about the power of trees and why we need them.