I DREW A TREE

I drew a tree and many birds there singing

with yellow-green leaves that rushed upon the wind

and every night I sang the stars above it

and every morning prayed that it would live

then darknesss swelled around my tiny orchard

and clowns broke rank to say it wasn’t there

and pirouetted off into the famous

and gossiped i was strange oh everywhere

then I closed all the doors and all the shutters

and lit my childhood candles one by one

and said to God if you allowed it

I know that they would take away the sun

But Light denied he said is just a story

he told me when the leaves rained down like tears

and you will see your tree restored in Glory

and all the love you gave it reappear.

mary angela douglas 2 november 2023