An Alchemy of Words

In Memoriam

"In Memoriam"

Three trees grew

on a windswept hill,

their branches bent

by the prairie breeze,

precious soil swept away

beneath their gaze,

exposing their tender roots

to the withering sun...

And then a stone

came rolling by,

across the plains,

over the river,

up the hill,

until it came at last to rest

in a little grove

where three trees stood

against the wind.

"I love you,"

said the stone.

"But you barely know us,"

said the trees.

"I know,"

the stone responded,

"but even so, I love you."

And with his love in summer,

the stone sheltered the trees from the afternoon sun

but always showed them sunrise and sunset

so they could mark the passing of the days.

And with his love in autumn,

the stone turned aside the fiercest of the winds

while still allowing the leaves of the trees to rustle

and slowly clothe their tender roots.

And with his love in winter,

the stone let snowdrifts form around him,

blanketing the trees against the frost

and keeping their soil rich and moist come thaw.

And with his love in spring,

the stone whispered to the creatures of the earth

that it was time to leave their burrows

and fill the grove with joy.

The seasons passed

and the trees learned to love the stone.

Their branches grew outward

to embrace him

and he was made welcome

in their grove.

Then one day,

without warning,

he was gone.

The sun beat down onto the hill

'til it was dry as bone!

The prairie wind tore through the grove

like a tornado!

Their precious soil crumbled away beneath them,

as fickle as the sand!

"Surely we are lost," the trees cried out,

"without the stone who loved us

and whom we loved in return!"

But a cloud passed in front of the angry sun

and the tornado's fury was quickly spent

and the creatures of the earth dug soil from their burrows

and brought it to the grove

that they might honour their memories

of the stone.

With his love, the stone had strengthened them

and thus the trees survived.

Their world still had sunrises and sunsets

and the three of them still came to find joy

in the passing of the days.

Many seasons passed upon that hill

and the trees grew straight and tall,

silhouetted against the sky.

One day a little boy made the journey to the grove,

hand in hand with the girl who he would someday marry.

Together, they played within its branches

and held the creatures of the earth

within their hands.

As dusk fell and the frogs began their chorus,

the boy pointed to a space between the branches.

"Look," he whispered to his beloved,

"There was a stone here once.

See how it left its shape upon the trees?"

[first published in New Bard Press, Drive, 2004]

˗ˏˋ・。☆.・゜✭・.
AUTHOR'S NOTES
✫・゜・。.・。. ✭

For my uncle on my mother's side, who passed early. And for my wife, who arrived later.