The trees speak to me
And tell me their Story

Some are planted first
For their growth will be long
And their fruits will come last
To feed the weakening strong
Who have made it to the end

Some flower early
To awaken in the young
The thirst for song, and in
The old the memory of beauty
As a birth gift for the Beyond

Some will be the fruit-bearers
In the middle of time
So that along the journey
Nature will take care of every
Wanderer, every Wonderer, every Seeker

The human life is spread out
Into stages and phases and types of natures
In every one you will find a helper
A teacher and a friend
This is love

Every Tree too has a Helper
Invisible to you and me
But this is love –
God leaves no one to struggle
Without giving him or her – or it – a helper too

For those whose leaves never drop
For those whose leaves drop and grow again
For those who stand straight
For those who bend in the wind
For those who grow unannounced, lonesome and rare
For those who meet me everywhere
I say Thank You.

The trees speak to me
And tell me their Story:
Now that you’ve tasted of the tree
Of the knowledge of good and evil
It is time for you to taste the fruit
Of the tree of life.

– Che Chidi Chukwumerije