When Great Trees Fall

Simplicity 20 comments

“When Great Trees Fall”

Mogollon Rim: Photo by: JoHanna Massey

When great trees fall,
rocks on distant hills shudder,
lions hunker down
in tall grasses,
and even elephants
lumber after safety.

When great trees fall
in forests,
small things recoil into silence,
their senses
eroded beyond fear.

Ponderosa Pine Mogollon Rim Photo: JoHanna Massey

When great souls die,
the air around us becomes
light, rare, sterile.
We breathe, briefly.
Our eyes, briefly,
see with
a hurtful clarity.
Our memory, suddenly sharpened,
examines,
gnaws on kind words
unsaid,
promised walks
never taken.

Great souls die and
our reality, bound to
them, takes leave of us.
Our souls,
dependent upon their
nurture,
now shrink, wizened.
Our minds, formed
and informed by their
radiance,
fall away.
We are not so much maddened
as reduced to the unutterable ignorance
of dark, cold
caves.

Mogollon Rim Photo by: JoHanna Massey

And when great souls die,
after a period peace blooms,
slowly and always
irregularly. Spaces fill
with a kind of
soothing electric vibration.
Our senses, restored, never
to be the same, whisper to us.
They existed. They existed.
We can be. Be and be
better. For they existed.”
― Maya Angelou

 

 

 

Photos: “Mogollon Rim Ponderosa Pine”   JoHanna Massey

20 comments

  3. wonderful poem and makes me think and feel! I agree I think things just unfold and we roll with it and our blogs show it many times, your blog is wonderful and these are issues that we are thinking about inside so I like that you brought them here to discuss! 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  5. Going deep becomes your poetry. The fear of the animals when a tall tree falls mirrored in the death of great souls and our response joins all living creatures in the circle of life. Excellent writing.

    Liked by 1 person

  13. Wonderful photograph alongside that poem by Maya Angelou, which is is stunning… also I love the song by Peter Gabriel. Thanks so much for sharing. Sendinglove and best wishes. Aquileana 🐉☀️

    Liked by 1 person

  16. Yes! I think I have come here at the right time.
    When great souls depart it is such a feeling that you cannot express.
    It is same with Trees and humans as well.
    Please go through my Posts —‘ I know you are the Soul,.But…..’ & ‘ Oh! Human”
    They say what all you wanted here to convey. Please go through.
    Love to You,
    Shiva

    Liked by 1 person

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