Fallen Trees

Fallen Trees ~ by C. Hause

Stalwart, giants of the forest

When did you fall?

In wild winds, 

Quiet darkness,

A cruel rain,

Or dappled morning light?

Did any witness hear…

The thud of trunk against soft dirt

The dash of doe and fawn

The scolding of the owl 

Did the forest keen

Marking such a loss? 

Oh, denizens of the forest 

Your height and breadth 

Cannot be fathomed 

Until found prostrate at our feet

Your girth a final offering 

To the forest floor

Your root ball cleaved

 From loamy soil 

Roots like loving fingers 

Sifting dirt on a mother’s grave

Soil that sustains us 

Yet waits for our return

As I walk the forest paths

I mourn these fallen giants 

But marvel at the light

Filling absent space

And know again 

It is in our falling,

We, too, will leave some light.