Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Roots

I sign a form 
to give away every part of me when I die

My twigs for shade from yellow-humid sun
My red blooms for tea & medicine
My thick leaves, dried & tied, an omen for blessings

Take these fibrous sap 
Sweeter than young tender coconut
Silk is my color, golden ripening 

My flesh, pickled spicy & thinly sliced, a feast    
My oblong seeds,  blossoming wings & words
My trunk, weathered storm, a ladder, a boat or ship

I see on desert or barren land 
My eyes craning for glorious sunset, pared succulent & ripe

Roots dig
deeply entrenched into a river

Underneath parched lands or dusty streets
A long shadow, healing & crowning a sky

For all my children's
children to remember me by-




Posted for D'verse Poets Pub - Thanks for the visit ~

44 comments:

  1. A tree is the epitome of love and sacrifice, it absorbs all the pain and gives only and only happiness to one and all.

    ReplyDelete
  2. it's cool to give away what we cannot keep anyway and make everything that's us a blessing for other people...

    ReplyDelete
  3. gorgeous, Grace, especially that second verse ~

    ReplyDelete
  4. a wonderful message for humanity....

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love your root-poem. cyclus....
    The rythm is very nice.

    Hugs
    JetteMajken

    ReplyDelete
  6. Perhaps it is only be what we give away in some way that we will be remembered....enjoyed your perspective.

    ReplyDelete
  7. what i find cool about this is that even in death we are useful...or at least a tree is....and that is a def legacy to leave behind for many generations to come...

    ReplyDelete
  8. A tree has many uses alive or dead, even helps make a nice comfy bed

    ReplyDelete
  9. A tree with edible fruit.. so many uses.. even the shade.. really quite lovely I would love to live where I could feast on mango..

    ReplyDelete
  10. Grace, it seems as though many took on the personification of a tree. I like yours very, very much. >KB

    ReplyDelete
  11. I enjoyed the generous angle of your poem, Grace! And I just love mangoes.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Grace, I love your opening line, "I sign a form
    to give away every part of me when I die"

    It's so true and giving, yet your poem has a peace about it- it can be good.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Such hope found in demise, or what I prefer to think of as transition. I loved seeing the mango trees in Hawaii. You walked the poetic tight rope between sadness & smiles; nice job.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Such a beautiful description of all a tree gives. Beautiful Grace.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I love the way you approached this and the different roles it still plays even in death.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Trees are always giving, even when it's just a beautiful photo. A lovely write :-)

    ReplyDelete
  17. This is one of my favourites of your poems, Grace. Very wonderful, especially the closing lines.

    ReplyDelete
  18. To be able to donate every part of you, and then live on. Can we wish for anything more? A thoughtful, lovely piece.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Giving is Living! Good poem! A little sad, time moves on...

    ReplyDelete
  20. Such a breath-taking poem.

    wow!!! You write with pure soul and heart! You have my respect. :)

    ReplyDelete
  21. Grace, I particularly love the reach of roots, a very insightful metaphor if you ask me.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Oh, I love the approach you took for this, and I love these lines:
    "Underneath parched lands or dusty streets
    A long shadow, healing & crowning a sky"

    ReplyDelete
  23. It's nice to read your beautiful poems again Grace. I missed you. This one is lovely. Trees keep giving us long after their deaths. I am so grateful to them.

    ReplyDelete
  24. to be a blessing to our children's children - that is a wonder indeed.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Oh, Grace- this seriously, hard core beautiful. That's all I can say.

    ReplyDelete
  26. this is beautiful. very interesting how you brought to life (in the shadows of its death) the tree.

    ReplyDelete
  27. so loved how you took this apart... great approach

    ReplyDelete
  28. This piece is very thought-provoking... the continuous sacrifice of the trees.. i like, 'blessing to our children's children'... beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  29. Beautiful, and love the personification, a lovely take on trees. :)

    ReplyDelete
  30. Mango tree is a wonder to watch as it makes such a sweet fruit to cherish

    ReplyDelete
  31. This is so incredibly beautiful Grace!! I just love this poem so much! You are a brilliant poetess! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  32. This is just my favourite poem of the day so far: it's gorgeous - I love this sense of continuity, of circularity, of sacrifice and replenishment.

    ReplyDelete
  33. So descriptive of the lovely flowering tree....we all need to stop to thing about saving the trees NOW!

    ReplyDelete
  34. So refreshing, Grace. A pleasure to contemplate.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Wow I love that we both blogged about trees! We must be on the same wavelength :) this is incredibly beautiful. Trees make so many sacrifices for us don't they? If only we could show them the same love that they show us...

    ReplyDelete
  36. beautifully done grace - love the images

    ReplyDelete
  37. What a great take on the prompt. Love how you wove this together. What a gift!

    ReplyDelete
  38. lovely poem a tree with many gifts..

    ReplyDelete
  39. Yes, not only lovely but immensely useful. As is your poem, that reminds us.

    ReplyDelete
  40. Beautiful writing, Grace. This poem reminds me of The Giving Tree. A tree is a gift.

    ReplyDelete
  41. I believe we live in our words, and our words live well beyond us. We become perpetual such as trees.For our children's children and beyond. Thought provoking! Thanks for sharing this.

    ReplyDelete
  42. Organ donors! If only we were as giving as trees!

    ReplyDelete

I try my best to reciprocate comments and visits.
I allow anonymous comments if you have difficulty posting them. Thank you & have a good day!!!