The Maple
SPRING
Warmed by the sun of early Spring,
A tender gift a bud did bring,
As bit by bit a leaf unfurled,
And revealed itself to the world
Although that leaf was first alone,
Soon others sprouted atop the throne,
Of twigs and branches, trunk and bark,
On the finest Maple in the park.
The crown of leaves, a green display,
Intensified with each passing day,
Two songbirds came and made a nest,
And soon two eggs inside did rest.
SUMMER
The sun climbed higher in the sky,
And as each day it arced by,
The leaves they turned to face the rays
Of Summer sunshines’ fiery blaze.
Young children often did come by,
To play in the playground just nearby.
And on the swings they laughed and swayed,
As parents sat in the leafy shade.
And crickets chirped beneath that tree,
While overhead, a hawk flew free,
And bees they buzzed, around and round,
A snake it slithered on the ground.
AUTUMN
A storm it did burst forth one day,
From clouds so very dark and grey,
And despite the thunder all around,
The stoic Maple stood its ground.
Inevitably the days grew shorter,
As the year moved into its third quarter,
And in the crisp, cajoling cold,
The leaves they turned a yellow gold
Soon there came the first hard frost,
And for the leaves all hope was lost.
They fluttered down upon the ground,
And piled up, without a sound.
WINTER
As the raking light of a Winter’s dawn,
Long shadows cast, across the lawn.
The tree stood calmly, gray and bare,
Bravely enduring the icy air.
And snow fell gently from aloft
Forming a blanket, deep and soft,
But despite the hefty weight of white.
The tree stayed solidly quite upright.
Eventually the cold diminished,
As Winter signalled it was finished,
And like so many times before,
Spring it did arrive once more ….
