Suicidal Oak by Kimberly Coverly

Ansel Adams - Oak Tree

Suicidal Oak by Kimberly Coverly

For decades I have been standing right here,

Although I have not always been alone

Brothers, comrades; hit at the knees they fall.

I should lucky, left to live and breath.

Yet I see this as the worst of all fates,

Left established here, no way to end it.

Over the years I have tried to tell them,

I drooped my branches hoping they would see

That I am sad and no longer want life.

But they see nothing but beauty in me,

I hear them speak of me as majestic,

They keep ignoring my suicide cries.

That old man with the grey beard is the worst,

I have done him a favor by staying,

He has made millions of dollars off me.

But he has doomed me to eternity.

I hear those men in polished suits, they say

“Famous! We will never kill this beauty!”

I want to thank those lovers who slash me,

Those gashes allow me to feel something,

So, when they sit beneath me I shade them,

The breeze from my weathered leaves cools their skin.

I let my timeworn roots support their date

I want to recognize their helping hands.

I am impatiently awaiting death.

But, I don’t see it in the near future,

That man with the shiny black contraption

Has sealed my fate for centuries to come.

Though I will stand here dark and ominous,

Hoping to hear the roar of a chainsaw.