OAK

Oak

Where did this Oak come from?

From an acorn dropped by chance on the valley floor

Or planted by man, providing shelter and substance

For flora and fauna alike

What makes this Oak?

Its root run, the depth of soil, the direction of falling light

Exposure to the wind changing the alignment of fibres within the stem

The shape of the trunk, the twisting boughs and branches

This Oak speaks of a hundred summers and a hundred winters

Of storms and droughts, floods and periodic snows

Visited by birds, pollinating insects, deer and sheep

Giving and receiving through the seasons

This tree is a living, ever changing conciliation of life forms in balance

Graham Ramsden