Arboreal (Poetry)

(Dedicated to Kathryn Milligan)

I would like a tree to hug —
some land around it — a domestic plot
to make my tree exclusive —
just for me — not shared with others
in some common park
or woodland where we’d have no privacy —
I’d like a long relationship that’s free
from inhibitions — so, if I’ve a mind
to dance around it, talk or sing
I won’t feel shy — I can caress
its weathered bark at will
or lie beneath it staring up
towards the sky.

I’d watch it fondly from my window seat —
marvel as it struggled into bud
encourage it to stretch on starlit nights
and let the moon illuminate my love.

I could take an acorn and a pot —
grow a baby — count its tiny leaves
and promise it a field someday — in what I hope
might be a happy place to raise a tree.