oak

for years, I have looked up to wonder

how high that mighty oak stretched

daydreamed about climbing to its top

watched with awe as it swayed in storms

 

now I can just step off the distance

as it lays across my neighbor’s yard

where it came to rest

last Wednesday at 8:25AM

 

it was a calm day, dry and mild

blue sky to the sun, barely a breeze in the air

yet she pitched over, cracking and crashing

shaking the earth and altering the horizon

 

I walked atop its length tonight

balancing in the day’s fading light

all the way down to the fractured stump

surprised at how we all must fall