Spring Storm
last night
a wild and raging wind
ripped a towering walnut tree
apart – seven feet above
where its thick truck emerged
from the ridge above the deep cedar creek.
fallen from the tall green canopy,
in its place now is
emptiness;
the clouds and the red-brown
water rushing by without remorse…
but I mourn the great tree;
fractured from the place it held
with quiet dignity for so long.
oh how my poor soul
longs for an earthly permanence
amidst the ever-changing currents of life;
amidst the strong winds of adversity –
shifting the shape and duration, in due time,
of all living things.
how desperately
and in vain I hope against nature’s law
not ever to be broken;
not ever to be removed.
– Jerry Dan Deutschendorf