Today
you are more endearing
than yesterday—
now that I know how you feel
about that tulip tree
you introduced me to—
the one so big
we both could give it a hug
and still not reach
each others fingertips.
You took me off the trail
to show me its secret life—
and in reverence we stood
on its fallen branches
covered in moss
as green as my envy
that all your love
has already taken root
elsewhere
and I am just something lost
in the wind,
caught for a while
on one of your perfect branches.
DeMaris
12-31-16
Painting by Lawren Harris, 1914-1917
“Algonquin Sketch”